The Beginning of the End
by LilManiac
Summary: My version of the end of the war. With my characters included... ;)
1. Alone

**gpshaw; hey, cool idea. I like your thinking...**

**Maybe our characters can meet somewhere..... :P**

**Okay, this is_ my_ version of the ending, with my characters included. But this will be shorter than my others, hopefully. All opinions count to me!**

My name is Jade.

And I was flying in a lazy circle above the destroyed town. And what was left of the old Yeerk pool. I saw birds here and there, and thought nothing much of them.

It had been months since I'd last heard from the Animorphs. They'd gone into hiding when the Yeerks finally found who they were. They'd taken their parents to wherever they were. All but Jake's parents. They had been Yeerked. I knew.

I was tested as well at school. Tested by none other than Tom himself. But I passed the test. Who knew I was such a good actor?

But it wasn't over yet. I knew. They had been watching me. Seeing if I'd slip up. I was careful not to make the wrong moves, but it was tricky. If they got too close, they'd know about me. And all the secrets they needed to know about the Animorphs.

I was definitely worried about them. The last I heard, they were getting Tobias's mother out. Then... nothing. Nothing at all.

But the explosion told me they were. They were very much alive, and still fighting.

Luckily, two days before the explosion, I had gotten my family out of the area and into the woods. I'd tied them up, and waited three full days before I knew for sure that they were all free. Then I told them everything, and we'd packed up and went on a 'camping trip'. I was lucky. I'd nearly gotten us caught, but after I provided a diversion, my family got away. And there was only one place I could think to take them. And now, after the explosion, I'd gone out to investigate. And I was glad they'd done it.

I watched with the eyes of the golden eagle as the Yeerks were brining cleanup crews in to repair the damage done. There were Taxxons everywhere. And in the middle of it all... a Yeerk pool ship. It made the Blade ship look like a toy. It made me feel like as small as a molecule. But I'd seen what I had to see. I knew, if they had survived the explosion... if the Animorphs _had_ survived... that it was all against them now. Against us.

I'd only been with them for only a year and something, but already I'd witnessed and been a part of more carnage than ever before. And this time, instead of attacking Terinans, and fighting back with the friends I knew so well, I was fighting humans with people I still hardly knew. So much death and destruction... and I was a part of it.

I keeled away from the destruction and the gigantic ship, instead heading for the woods, to where I knew my family was waiting. They needed me now. I was their only defence.

I landed next to the bits and pieces of the camp site, watching as my father put more wood on a makeshift fire, then put a cooking pot over it. I became myself again, suddenly realising that my little sister, Phoebe, was watching me. Her little eyes were wide as she pointed at me, her other hand halfway in her mouth.

"Cookie!" She said as the traces of feathers finally disappeared and she laughed and giggled. Cookie was her way of saying 'cookoo'. You know, like a chicken or something? She was a little cookoo herself, but then again... she was only three years old. Such innocence...

"You're back" Dad said nonchalantly, deliberately looking away from me as I changed back. I guess he still hadn't gotten used to me being able to change into animals and stuff like that. I guess it was pretty creepy.

"Yeah. Where's Tina and mum?" I asked, seeing my brother's foot was sticking out of one of the tents. It was only then that he dared to look at me.

"Gone to see what berries and that they could find that are edible. You know your mum's a natural botanist at heart"

"Uh-huh" I muttered, going over to the stream and taking a drink. I waited for them to return, tense, and watched as they came back with mushrooms of some sort. Then I woke up Ryan and told them what I planned to do.

"But... will you be all right going there? I mean, by yourself?" My mother asked, looking worried. She was still a little edgy about me too. After all, I'd told her everything... from the time I was ten... to now. To the Animorphs and the Yeerks. It was a lot to absorb. I mean, her whole life she's been trying to protect me from... stuff like this.

"It's all right mum. Remember what I told you? The Hork-Bajir might look deadly, but they're harmless. Really" I assured her, going and hugging her to assure her. She hugged back, tightly.

"I'm sorry" She whispered in my ear "I'm sorry you had to go through all this... alone"

"Not alone mum. Never alone" I replied, pulling away and smiling at her.

"You take care of yourself, all right? I want to still be able to count to four with my children" my dad said, and I nodded as I began my change. Dad and Tina looked away, but my mum and brother watched. And Phoebe.

"You just focus on taking care of yourself. And remember, if you hear anything out of the ordinary..." I trailed off as my nose and lips melted together, then pushed out to become a beak, and I began to shrink.

"Yeah, we know. Forget to pack up, and run like mad" Ryan smiled a little, still fascinated as my hair seemed to slurp back into my skull and my feet became talons.

(Don't worry, I'll be back for you. I'll do whatever it takes to protect you) I said in thought-speak, flapping my wings hard and lifting myself off the ground with a lot of effort. I finally caught a good updraft, soaring up above the trees.

Three hours of endless searching, and I was just about to give up. It was getting dark fast, and eagle eyes are just about as good as human eyes in the darkness. So I landed in a branch, and focused on making the smallest changes. Soon, I took off again as a barn owl. My wings made no noise as I glided above the darkening landscape.

Then... poof! It was all suddenly there in front of me. The free Hork-Bajir valley, and some humans... I guessed the Animorphs parents... walking around, talking. It was all very tense here, I could feel it.

_Some thing must be happening, _I thought_, something big._

I glided down to what looked like war trenches, away from the Hork-Bajir. Away from the parents and humans. I guessed I'd cause quite a lot of havoc if I just landed and started changing in the middle of them. Chances were I'd be dead before I could open my mouth. So I decided to change in a trench, and come out as a human. Maybe I could earn their trust that way.

I began to slowly grow, with my wings melting into arms and my beak becoming a human mouth. I focused hard as the feathers disappeared into my skin, and my tattered clothes began to form from...

"Stop! Yeerk!" In seconds, there was a wrist blade pressed against my throat.

"Wait!" I cried "I'm a good guy!"

"You... good?" The guttural voice asked, but the blade stayed right where it was, inches from my throat. I don't know how, but I was still changing. The feathers were gone, and my eyes grew smaller and more human.

"No! No good! Yeerk! Yeerk trick!" Came another voice, and I saw another towering over me.

"Please, I'm not here to hurt you!" I begged "I'm here to help!"

They seemed to take a while to digest this. But then...

"I get friend. Friend will know" the second said, and bounded off to the camp. The firsts blade stayed right were it was. I think that was the only reason why I hadn't collapsed already. I was too afraid it might cut me.

Minutes later, a whole gaggle of adults emerged from the darkness, carrying torches, and the Hork-Bajir that was holding me brought me forward to them. I was fully human now, wearing tattered clothes and my hair looking like it hadn't had a good brush in a long time. I was a mess.

"Hmm" A dark haired woman said, coming close and looking into my eyes.

"Well... can you tell if she's... you know" A guy... I think Cassie's dad asked, looking worried.

"It doesn't make sense. If Visser One wanted to come back and finish us off, why send only one person. And why a young girl? I thought they'd..."

"They're taking everyone now, remember? Even young girls" the dark haired woman said to a woman with blond hair. Tobias's mother? I couldn't be sure.

"Wait! I know her. She's been around to the house... I mean, when we had a house... a few times. Marco said her name was..." I couldn't believe it. It was Marco's dad! He remembered me!

"Yeah, it's me" I croaked "It's Jade"

"Jade. That's it! But..."

"Don't be tricked by her appearance. There still could be a Yeerk hiding behind those eyes"

"I... I..." What could I say to prove it to them? The dark haired woman was right; anyone could be a controller. So I said the only thing I could think of saying; what I'd come here to say.

"Look, my family is in the woods. They're alone and scared. I pulled them out just before the town was destroyed. They... without me, they're vulnerable to a Yeerk attack. And I can't be with them twenty four-seven. I need to do what I... so I... I came to ask the free colony if I could... if we could stay here for a while. I... I made sure they're not... you know? They're clean, and my dad has a lot of camping experience and..." okay, now I'd started to babble. It happens when I'm nervous. Or when I have a blade at my throat.

"Look at her; she's terrified! What makes you think she's evil? She's just a scared little girl" Cassie's mum said. Her eyes looked sympathetically at me.

"That scared little girl just emerged from a bird. Or so these Hork-Bajir say"

"Look" I said, only sounding a little stronger "I know you have no reason to trust me... that the Yeerks are everywhere... but I..." ok, now I was lost for words. There really was nothing I could say.

"My family needs me" I whispered, fighting back tears and looking into the accusing faces of the adults. The dark haired woman narrowed her eyes, her lips pressed into a thin line. Like she couldn't figure me out.

"Bring her back to the camp" she said at last "We'll wait until the Animorphs get back. Then, we'll know"

I swear, there are times when I just hate myself. This was one of those times.


	2. The first hope

They marched me back to the campsite, and sitting down on what looked like a picnic table. They tied my hands with thick ropes, and bound my feet to one of the seat supports. They assigned a couple of Hork-Bajir to watch me, as well as a human. I finally realised that the woman who had been so distrusting of me... was Marco's mother. Her dark hair and eyes... so much like his. Only... there was something more to this woman. After all, she'd been a Yeerk Visser. She didn't get to where she was by giving people the benefit of the doubt.

Rachel's mum watched me first, as the others went off and talked or whatever.

"I really don't know what to think of you Jade" She said a little nastily as she stood with her arms crossed over her chest and her hard eyes staring me down. The two Hork-Bajir were positioned closer. Their orders; if I start to change, they kill me.

"I don't know either" I replied in a whisper, staring down at the ground. Soon, Cassie's dad took over, looking a little weirded out about all this. He looked angry and sympathetic all at once. And that was terrifying.

I waited like that, until I heard some kind of commotion from far off, and I looked up to see the parents were going somewhere... Cassie's dad took off, and there was a lot of people talking at once, raised voices...

Then I saw Cassie run past me, tears streaking her face, and into one of the makeshift cottages or whatever they were. I don't even think she saw me. Her parents followed, worried. I thought about my parents... it had been hours since I'd last talked to them. I wondered if they were all right...

"Jade!" Came a voice. I looked up to see Marco and Rachel running towards me, the looks on their faces unreadable. Marco collapsed on his knees in front of me, trying to loosen the ropes that held my hands. Then he got frustrated, screamed, and yelled at his dad to give him a knife or something. Seconds later, a swiss-army knife was in his hands, and he cut me roughly free. I got up, and he hugged me tightly. But something was wrong... I saw Rachel...

"Ahhhh!!" She screamed in anger and frustration kicking the side of the picnic table, then balled her hands into fists, looking like she wanted to hit something. Or someone...

"What, what is it?" I asked instinctively, pulling away from Marco and looking at him. His eyes were dark.

"We... I'm glad to see you, but..."

"I'll explain later. What is it?"

"We went on a mission to try and stop the Taxxons... the Yeerks, from trying to build another Yeerk pool. We put everything we had into it... and... we lost Jake"

I choked on the words. I hadn't had contact with these people in so long... and now I get the bad news that they... that Jake was...

Marco, and a reluctant Rachel, filled me in on their situation. They had made more Animorphs, but they'd lost the morphing cube... everything was going under...

"Why didn't you try and contact me? I could have helped you!"

"If we tried to make any kind of contact with you, you would have been in even more danger. And... then you disappeared..."

"I didn't have a choice. I had to do something. And not knowing whether you guys were alive or not... I couldn't just sit and do nothing!" I told them my side of the story, and he nodded in understanding. Rachel... I couldn't tell what she thought of this.

"We can send Tobias to lead them here. But you... you have to stay here for now, ok?"

"But I..." At that moment, Marco's mother stepped up behind him.

"I see. Your mum still thinks I'm a...a Yeerk or something" I nodded, sighing heavily. They didn't want me to leave till they'd confirmed my story.

"We can't be sure until... you know" Marco said. Rachel had taken off somewhere, and I saw Ax a little off to the right, seemingly talking to a Hork-Bajir and Marco's dad.

He called Tobias over, and I told him the direction I'd flown from, but also telling them they could have run if they'd been in trouble. He'd agreed to go get them and flew off into the darkness. I was worried he couldn't see at night, but something told me he'd find them, and that everything would be ok.

An hour and a half later, they trudged into the valley, looking like the most unhappy campers you could ever come across. But as soon as they saw me, they hugged me tightly, and I held Phoebe for a little while, before Rachel and Tobias's mum swept them up, along with the Hork-Bajir seer named Toby, towards the camp, probably to make preparations. Ryan and Tina met up with Sarah and Jordan, and the last I saw they were climbing the trees, talking and laughing.

I smiled at them, then turned back to the others. Everyone seemed tense, and I couldn't blame them. They'd lost their leader. They'd lost a friend. Cassie had lost someone she loved. Poor Cassie. I went looking for her, hoping I'd find her... maybe talk to her...

But that's when my lack of sleep and adrenaline kicked in. Someone led me to a makeshift bed... where I drifted off to sleep, and into the nightmares that had become a part of my life.

_**-----------------------------------------x------------------------------------**_

By early next morning, I knew I'd missed something big. The valley had come live, and as I staggered out into the early sun, I saw Hork-Bajir running around a little nervously, and the parents seemed a little more optimistic then they had been at night.

Then I saw why. Jake. He was alive!

I ran over to the big group, shocked to know he was all right. Cassie and Jake looked surprised. But Marco quickly filled them in before Jake told us his story. The Taxxons... they wanted to side with us!

It was great news... until Ax decided to tell us his big secret. Then everyone seemed to erupt at the same time. I couldn't say much... I hadn't been with the program for a while. But I was angry at him too, for betraying his friends like this... after he'd sworn never to do it again. In my books, if you have people that trust you, and you trust them, you don't turn your backs on them. No matter what.

But Jake finished telling us about the Taxxons, and what he planned to do. But I saw he wasn't as happy as he had been when he started telling it to us.

"Jade" Jake finally said, turning to me "Is there any way we can contact Ithiell and the others? Or maybe the Chanaibens?"

I shook my head "The only thing I know for sure that could have helped us is my little watch/phone. But I had to leaved that behind in the apartment when I left with my family. I don't know if it's still there or not..."

"Okay..." he took a deep breath "Okay, here's what we do" He told us, and about an hour later I was in the air, flying out to where the town used to be. Marco and Ax were with me. I would've liked to take Rachel, but Cassie and Jake warned against it. She had become a very 'loose cannon', according to them, and since they didn't want to leave Rachel and Ax together, he suggested I take the two. Tobias would be the lookout while the five of us were gone.

Ax and Marco were fleas on my little bird shoulders as I flew, since we didn't want the Yeerks seeing three birds in the sky going the same direction, and Jake had made it clear that we needed to hurry. So I was riding the thermals like Tobias had once taught me to do, flapping hard every now and then, then diving and gliding diagonally to cover as much ground as possible.

Soon, we were over my old apartment building... which was still standing.

(Good news! It's still there! It might mean the watch is too!) I said excitedly.

(All right then, let's go in) Marco instructed, and I pulled my wings back and dove, straight for my old window, shattered from the explosion.

I glided neatly through, landing on the bed, looking around with my intense eagle eyes. I saw two fleas catapulting off my back, and onto the floor, and we all began to shift and change.

(Watch for the glass!) I told them just before I lost the ability to thought-speak. I grew, and soon found myself kneeling on the bed, looking down as the other two began to grow from the floor. It was disgusting to watch, but for some reason I couldn't take my eyes off them. Soon they were back to normal, both looking around.

"Let's start looking for it" Marco said, helping me up off the bed. Below our feet, the floor creaked noisily.

(I suggest we watch our step. The support structures of this building may have been...)

"Ok" I said, moving over to my night stand, flicking the light on and shuffling through the mess on it.

"And they say girls are neat" Marco scoffed as I heard him making his way carefully around the broken glass, to the other side of the room.

"We were in a hurry. And Phoebe stays in this room too you know" I replied as I turned my attention to the drawers. I heard Ax crunching over to my wardrobe and opening the door to look inside. Marco was looking around on my small desk. I looked through the three drawers, then carefully started to lift the clothes and stuff on the floor, watching as shards of glass fell from my old clothes.

"I found it!"

"Ah!"

At the same time Marco shouted in victory, a small shard of glass cut my hand, in the middle of my palm, and I dropped the shirt and fell back on the bed.

"Jade, what happened?" He asked as I held my cut hand with my other, shaking a little. It was more or less the sudden sharp pain that scared me, not the pain itself. But the blood was dripping onto the floor.

"Hang on" he came over, put the watch beside me, then picked up another old shirt, being careful not to get cut as well, then pulling and the edges and trying to rip it.

(Here) Ax offered, and in seconds his tail cut straight through the shirt, with Marco yelping in surprise.

"Don't _do _that!" he cried, but then ripped the shirt apart more easily and bandaged my cut hand as well as he knew how to.

"Thanks guys" I said, grabbing the watch in my other hand and inspecting it. It didn't look too damaged, and I was sure Ax could probably fix any damage it might have.

"Let's go" Marco said tersely, and minutes later we were out the window again, with me carrying not only two fleas, but with the hope that we could win this war.


	3. Jake's plan

**This chappie's a bit rushed. So, sorry...next chappie will be better, promise!**

Let me tell you something. Shape-shifting is a lot different from morphing. For one thing, if you get hurt in your own body, you _stay_ hurt. It doesn't work like the DNA stuff of morphing.

I landed back at the colony, with Ax and Marco jumping off me and demorphing as soon as they could. Must suck being a flea.

Not long after, Marco took me to Cassie's mum, who expertly wrapped a sterile bandage around my hand, stopping the new flow of blood after she'd cleaned and disinfected the wound. It hurt for a little while, but then I felt better.

Ax was working on the small damages done to the watch when a little while later Cassie and Jake returned, still looking a little worse for wear. But I knew they'd be ok. There was something else in Jake's eyes; the beginning of a plan.

Ax was lucky and managed to fix it without destroying it as we kind of all stood around him in a loose circle and watched. I thought it must have been nerve-racking for him, being watched. But when he handed the watch to me, he was smiling. The weird way Andalites do with their eyes. I took it in my good hand, smiling back at him.

(You may attempt communication with your friends now. I have successfully completed the fix by fusing the co...)

"Ax, don't get all science guy on us, all right? I hate it when you do that" Marco, of course.

I looked down at the watch, pressing a button and suddenly finding everyone was now beginning to crowd around me. Sheesh, how did Ax do it?

In seconds, the watch began to blink like it did the first time, and I smiled. I pushed the button again and the screen came to life. Static, then...

"Hello? Who is this?" Ithiell's voice!

"Ithiell! It's me, it's Jade!" I said a little too excitedly, but then calmed myself.

"Jade? What is it, what happened?" Now I could see his face, and he looked concerned. I looked up at Jake, who was practically looking over my shoulder.

"I think the ball is in your court now Jake" I said handing the watch to him. He seemed a little reluctant to take it, but then the watch slid from my hands, and the two began to talk.

And at night fall, the Animorphs took off, into the night. They gave me specific instructions to stay here and wait. But truthfully, I'd had enough of waiting. I had enough of not knowing. And there was no way I was going to loose the Animorphs... my friends, again.

So when the peregrine falcon took off, he had one extra passenger aboard. A fly.

I nestled deep in his feathers, careful not to be seen by Tobias or felt by Jake. They didn't need to know I was there. No one did.

Amanda would know what I'm capable of. Ithiell sure as heck knows. Robert... well, although there are times that you just want to turn around and rip his tongue out, there are other times when he can simply amaze you. So, I guessed, he would know too. In fact, he'd probably do it himself. Rtaia... well, maybe she'd see possibilities, but she's kind of slow when it comes to reckless action.

But the Animorphs...? No. Not even Cassie could guess. And Cassie was the one who apparently saw everything. She knew how to read people. But I think I had even her clueless. I was a turncoat. Sometimes I'd sway one way, sometimes the other.

I was careful to move when Jake demorphed, shrinking to flea and landing on top of his head and burrowing my way into his hair which seemed as thick as trees to me. But I didn't care, just as long as Tobias didn't see me, and if he did, he thought he was looking at one of the others.

"Where are you guys anyway? Where on my body did you end up after I demorphed?" I heard Jake ask the others as he sat in a car.

(Gotta tell you, cousin, I don't know where we are exactly, and I don't really want to know) Rachel replied.

"Mmmm. Good point" he said. I zoned out for a little while until I heard something like music playing for a little while. Then the rumbling started.

"Um... you guys feel that?"

(We're fleas, we feel everything) Cassie replied.

I heard Tobias say something, but I was too focused on the rumbling. Then... we were moving down! Even my little flea body felt that.

_I am never, **ever** doing this again_ I promised myself, _guh-ross!_

We soon came to a stop, and I knew this was the time I got off. I jumped off Jake's head as he got up and I landed on the seat he was sitting in. Still warm too.

I quickly became a fly, wishing I had a can of raid to spray myself with, and zoomed with crazy fly wings up towards the ceiling, landing upside down and gripping with my little fly feet. Urgh, yukko!

I watched as Jake walked up onto the podium, in front of god knows how many Taxxons, and made an impressive display of showing them another way out of the war. He became an anaconda... and the Taxxons were in awe. Or as much awe as a Taxxon can be in. Jake made an impressive speech too. I admired his courage. All these Taxxons... with their funny jelly eyes and dangerous mouths...

I honestly would have been running and screaming by now. Probably not in that order either.

They all wandered off... all but one, who talked to Jake. I could only guess it was their leader. Minutes later, Ax, Cassie, Marco and Rachel all stood in the underground caverns, all as themselves.

Then _he_ came. Tom. I swear if I had been human I would've wet myself. Immediately, this mission that turned out hopeful went really, _really _bad.

I watched as Tom and Jake bristled, neither of them willing to back down. Rachel was now a grizzly, and Ax was in striking distance of Tom... but I saw the tension between the two sides. Between the supposed brothers. Between good and evil.

He offered an ultimatum. A deal. A way into the Pool ship. Jake took it. I had to stop myself from screaming "You idiot! Do you have any idea what you've done!!"

Instead, I calmly latched onto Jake's back as he morphed and we flew out of the tunnels. I had to fight the urge to become something with teeth and bite him, or just grow to be something really big and squash him to death.

Him and Cassie were talking, but ignored it. Meaningless debating between those two. Lovers quarrel...

(Marco? Find the Chee. Find them. Bring Erek to me) Jake's voice suddenly cut through my 'man I am so bored' stage.

(How am I going to do that? The Chee hideout is in the blast area. I tried, but it's nothing but destruction, you can't even tell where the streets used to be. And it's crawling with Yeerks shooting anything that moves. It would be very easy to get myself killed going back there) was his response. But I knew... Jake had a plan...

(Yeah, I know. Do it anyway) Jake said (I need the Chee)

I felt sick. Jake was going to risk his best friends life for... for what?! I wanted to shout and scream at him for his stupidity. But I kept my mouth shut, carefully listening as Jake sent the others off as well. All but Rachel.

(Rachel, I have a job for you) I listened to his little 'job', and it just made me hate him even more. Sure, he might have a plan... but it was all suicidal as far as I'd heard!

(Okay Jake, you're right. And you're right to use me for this. Not exactly something I'm proud of, maybe, but later, you know, if- don't be blaming yourself, okay?)

With that, she angled off. But little did she know she had a passenger. And this little passenger had a definite purpose in this war now.

_**-------------------------------------------------x--------------------------------**_

I didn't know if they'd figure it out or not. If they knew I was gone. I'd said I needed to take a break. For all they knew, I'd gone out for a little fly. Which was true in a way. I was flying, but I wasn't really... uh... _flying_, if you know what I mean.

I'd left the watch/phone back with the Hork-Bajir. Or, more specifically, with Toby. I knew, beyond a doubt, that he was going to use my friends for this as well. But whatever happened, I knew they would be in much less danger than what Jake was putting his cousin in. His own cousin! The fool...

Well, it became harder to stay attached to Rachel as she demorphed somewhere, then remorphed as a flea. I decided to ditch and watch what she did. She waited. She was very patient, but eventually she found her target; Tom's head. I joined her. A fellow flea on a head of hair. But this fellow flea didn't have a time limit. And this fellow flea was acting alone.

_Sometimes crazy works_... I remembered one of the boys say to me once. This... this was beyond crazy though.

For a while there was a lot of shaking and bumping, and then we took to the road. It sounded like someone had taken a beating. I ignored it and tried to think of what was to come. Was I doing the right thing? For all I knew, Jake probably had something else in store for me. Well, I wasn't going to play that way. I was... what _was_ I gonna do when the time came? I wasn't exactly as fearless as Rachel, and I didn't have the...

(Rachel?)

(I'm here Jake)

I heard more commotion, then quivered as Visser One's voice boomed, seeming to be angry. I heard... Cassie had been hurt? But... no. He wouldn't let her get hurt like that. No way. Then I realised... and something seemed to click in just the right places.

I heard more angry words, then Visser One commanding that a Taxxon eat Cassie... and her horrible screams I wished I could blank out...

I heard their voices, and finally, Rachel final words to her cousin,

(Doing good, huh, Jake?)

Then, nothing more was said. I just rode on Tom's head, only a little bit away from what I hoped was Rachel. I couldn't tell. And right now, I was terrified. I wanted to talk to someone... _anyone_... but then they'd know I was here. They'd know, and Rachel would do whatever it took to get me back to Jake, to stop me from stealing her 'glory'. But I wasn't in it for glory. I was in it to stop Jake from making one of the biggest mistakes of his life. I knew... I heard it in his voice... in the past, when I'd talked to him about what would happen if... you know. But now...

The other flea! It just vanished!

_No_, I said to myself, _it didn't vanish, it jumped._ _Must be her._

I didn't know much about fleas, but I knew that they hardly ever jump away from a warm body. At least, not on purpose. And... did fleas normally hide in human hair? I didn't know.

"That's... that's not a waist dump. They aren't dumping waste! That's the pool. The main pool. It's been flushed" A voice suddenly said, drawing me back to the present.

Then came the worried voices. Almost panicked. And I knew... Jake had struck. Tom might not have known it yet, but he would soon.

"But why? Why would the visser flush... what does this mean?" I took that moment to jump off Toms head, growing little fly wings as I jumped and managing to attach myself to the ceiling as I completed my speed change. It was the fastest I'd ever Shape-shifted. But now I could see with eyes... albeit compound fly eyes, but still eyes... what was happening.

The Pool ship fired, but missed the Blade ship... because that's when I realised where we were... each time. I was also seeing something emerging from a flea under a large console. Rachel.

Tom... or at least the slug inside his head... contacted the Pool ship and spoke with a slightly more deflated Visser One than normal. Then the screen widened and I saw Jake and the others. Tom saw them too.

"Bring us around to target the Pool ships bridge. Do it! Now! Now! Bring us around!" Tom almost shrieked. He thought he'd gotten rid of the Animorphs. Man, was he wrong. And was he stupid. Thinking he could do what the visser had failed to do when...

"Animorph!" Someone screamed in absolute horror. It was only then that I realised Rachel was almost full grizzly bear.

(That's right, genius: Animorph) she said a little self-mockingly. And then I saw her start to do her 'job'.

She attacked.


	4. Cheating death

WHAM!! She hit Tom full force, right into the veiwscreen.

She moved so fast I barely had time to think about doing anything. And then dracon fire burned her right flank. But now she was one angry bear. She swung left and right, smashing apart the consoles beside her.

"No Shooting! You'll destroy the bridge! Morph! Morph you idiots!" Tom yelled just as Rachel swung a paw at him. He ducked and she missed him. But she went after him anyway, causing some serious damage to his body.

(Rachel, behind!) Jake shouted. She spun, and took out a still morphing leopard. Then she began to smash apart the bridge. But she'd overlooked...the others!

And I couldn't do anything! I'd wasted too much time just watching, and now... I couldn't shift without being seen before I finished and crushed by the others on the bridge. So I had to wait for the right moment. Had to... it was my only choice now!

Rachel, a mountain of grizzly, faced two lionesses, a cape buffalo, and a polar bear. And she talked to them, sounding fearless. Sounding just like she should. Then she lunged! Straight for the bear!

And then it was madness! The buffalo slammed her after she hit the bear with her deadly claws, then it came at her again! Then the lionesses struck! It was horrifying! Rachel tried to get them off, turning around in a weird sort of circle.

_Stay still_, I prayed, _I can't help you if you don't stay still!_

I buzzed over them, waiting for the right moment, watching in horror as the buffalo butted her again and again, and the lionesses attacked with everything they had! Blood spilled the floor. Hers and theirs!

(He's a snake!) Someone cried (Rachel!)

And then... too late I saw the cobra. It bit her, right in the eyes!

And she was down! But... not defeated yet! I buzzed, landed on another part of the ceiling, almost right above her, watching as the Yeerk that had been the polar bear remorphed.

(Help me Tobias) Rachel pleaded, and I swear my heart broke. I knew why she was... why...

(I can't... I...)

(Help me get him. Help me get him!) No, I was wrong! She wasn't giving up!

(Okay. Okay. He's... your left paw, toward your face. Get ready. Has to be fast)

(I'm ready)

(Now!) She jerked her paw, claws extended, and skewered the biting cobra. Tom shrieked, twisting both in pain as well as trying to break free. But she had him. She had him good.

(No!)

(Sorry)

(Jake, stop her!) The Yeerk screamed. But it was too late, she bit down on the snake. Then... she demorphed. I watched the others... the other Yeerks. They were all watching, waiting. Polar bear, buffalo, and two lionesses...

Now they surrounded her, and the polar bear loomed up in front of her. But she looked past him, to the viewscreen. To the human Tobias, and said the three words that snapped me into action. I began to grow, moving myself just enough so that when I dropped, I wouldn't drop on Rachel. I grew faster as I watched the bear raise its paw, ready to kill her.

(Hey you! Yeah, the polar bear. I'm talking to you!) I yelled, buying myself a few extra seconds. He hesitated. So did the others. Rachel tensed up, and I heard my friends sounded confused.

(You forgot to look up!) He did, and had about three milliseconds to think _what?_ Before I hit, still a squirming mass of fly and polar bear. But I was heavy enough to knock him back and away from Rachel.

"What the...?" Rachel began, as I completed my shift to full polar bear, and shoved the other bear back, making it slide across the blood-slicked floor. Not far, but far enough. Then I ran at the buffalo, head butted him, nearly knocking myself out as well, and pushed him back.

(Sorry to steal your thunder, but...AAHHHH!!) I screamed as the two lionesses leaped and started trying to take chunks out of me. But it was mostly the blubber the bear has to keep it warm. Didn't mean it didn't hurt.

BAM!! The buffalo was back, head butting my back leg and making me sit down very, _very_ hard.

(Jade?) A voice asked from the screen. A voice I knew all too well.

(Yeah, it's me guys! The cavalry!) I whipped my head around, bit down and snatched a large chunk of a lionesses leg, making it back off.

(You sent her to die too?!) Someone accused as I knocked the others back, getting shakily up and swinging my head left, then right. Standoff.

(I... I didn't... I thought she was back at the camp!!)

WHOOOMP!! Polar bear attacked, knocking me back and into an instrument panel. It hurt, but right now I didn't have time for pain.

(Jake didn't! I came myself! I wanted to help!) I told them, screaming in bear fury as the other Polar bear came at me again, swinging a paw but missing me as I dodged sideways, putting all the force I could into hitting the other bear, making him slip back on the floor, scrabbling to keep his footing.

"She must have been the flea I saw on your head Jake!" Tobias's voice was hopeful.

(Yep, that was me. And I took a ride on a bald eagle after all that stuff happened) I said painfully as the bear came at me again, but missed as the buffalo butted me hard in the side, and I slid across the floor and into the path of the remaining lioness. She leaped at my face, but I threw my paw out and hit her in mid-leap, sending her sprawling into the bear.

(Rachel! Help!) I cried as the lioness used the bear as leverage and leapt back at me and onto my back, with me screaming and rage and pain.

(Rachel!) Marco cried, sounding desperate. Oh god... had they attacked her when she was...

(Almost done. Just a few more seconds Jade!) She yelled as the buffalo once again hit me, sending me careening across the blood slicked floor, desperately trying to get some traction. I slipped and fell, with the lioness still trying to rip me to shreds. She'd managed to rip my ear off, and got one of my eyes with her claws, so now my blood joined the others blood on the floor. I closed my eye tight, hoping it would help and trying my best not to start screaming in pain.

Then... WHAM! Something hit the lioness hard, sending it flying into the wall, knocking it out. Rachel!

(Sorry it took so long. I just couldn't believe what I was seeing)

(Well, believe it) I said as I fought to stand up beside the grizzly, watching with one eye as the polar bear and the buffalo lined up beside one another, just like we were doing. The remaining lioness and a half morphed lioness were just behind them.

(Ready?)

(Do I have a choice?)

(All right then, charge!) She yelled and we took off, across the floor. The other two did the same, running straight at us. I was headed for the buffalo.

At the last second I used my momentum to slide to the left, then raised a paw, claws extended, and slashed the buffalo right across his body, and down to his flank. Beside me, I heard Rachel hit the other bear.

BAM!! Buffalo horn hit my flank! He'd turned around and came back at me! I tried to face him, but before I knew it, I had another lioness on me! I knocked her back, just before it hit me again, sending me sliding into one of the walls. I hit sideways, watching as he prepared to ram me again, and the lioness....

(Look! It's Tom! It's the snake!!) Someone screamed in horror. I looked with my one good eye and watched as the snake, now somehow fully regenerated, was coming slowly at me. Slithering across the floor. But... how did he...

(Ahhhh!!!) Lioness on me again! I hit her, hard, and sent her into the panel beside me. She fried on the electrical wires. _Good_, I thought,_ serves her right..._

I backed up as much as I could as the buffalo hit the wall, hard. I grabbed onto the horns, and spun him into the wall behind me. He hit, stumbled, and tried to come...

(Jade, the snake!!)

A sudden sharp pain in my paw! I looked down groggily to see that damn cobra strike me again, pumping poison into my bloody paw. I slammed my other paw hard into the snake, almost breaking it in two, then slid it under a console. Now he was out of the fight... was it Tom...?

I sagged back against the wall, suddenly feeling groggy. The buffalo came at me again, but missed and hit the wall in front of me, hard. It fell, and seemed dazed... I wasn't doing too good...

(Jade! Oh god no, JADE!!) Someone screaming, someone...

(Shape-shift! Change! Do something! Just don't die!!) Jake's voice... at least, I think it was Jake, said... so far away...

(Jade, look at the tiger on the screen. See the tiger?)

(Ti... what?) My vision was going blurry, but I looked up at the thing in front of me. Tiger...?

(Yeah. See the big kitty? See him? I want you to become him, okay?)

(Oh. Okay) I said from far away. I looked at the kitty... big kitty... good kitty...

(Cassie, we don't know if...)

(Well its better than watching her die!) Voices, so far away... good kitty... can I be like you...

Slowly, very slowly, I felt my organs shift and change, and watched groggily as orange fur rippled across the white fur of the polar bear, and my knees reversed direction... then my eyes changed... and I had two eyes...

Then, as I became more like the tiger on the screen, I began to become aware of my surroundings. I saw the others on the screen, and Jake, the tiger I was now becoming, looking at me worriedly. Then a grizzly and a polar bear in a one on one battle. The buffalo, bruised and bloody, was setting himself up to come at me. The snake, which actually used to be the second lioness, demorphing. The other snake... Tom... was still on a mess on the floor.

Finally, my wonderful tigers tail sprouted from my spine, and my senses kicked into overdrive. I'd made it!

(Thanks Cassie) I said privately to her, then joined the melee once more. I ripped apart the still growing snake before it could even blink. Then I went at the buffalo, sideswiped, and latched my teeth onto its neck, carefully avoiding the horns as it tossed and turned, trying to shake me off. But I was a tiger now. I was liquid grace. Sure a bear is great for brute force, but I needed speed now. We were running out of time, and as the ship began to slowly drop, I knew others would be coming to the bridge to check out the situation.

(Tell me) I began, talking to the buffalo (Now or I'll kill you... tell me, where is it?)

He seemed confused, stuttering... but then I calmly explained it to him, and he shakily told me.

(Now, start demorphing and I'll let you go) I said. He didn't believe me, but I began to bite harder, and he complied. I let go as he became more human, standing only a few feet from him, and when he was done, I knocked him out with a single swipe of the paw.

I looked over at the two bears... only... a grizzly was standing over a still polar bear. A polar bear with a lot of blood. A wound on its neck told me everything.

(Come on, we've got to get off this ship!)

(Why, we...)

(Listen, we're falling, and I'm sure there are a lot more Yeerks that can morph on this ship, so I say we get out while we can)

(But...)

(Rachel, she's right! Please... you've done what I asked you to...) Jake trailed off, and Tobias just stared at her. But she nodded and looked at me.

(One more thing before we do) I added, quickly leading her to the place were the morphing cube was stored. I took it in my mouth and we raced towards a hatch, where the air pressure pretty much blew us out the door. But by then we were no longer a bear and a tiger...


	5. aftermath

**gpshaw- I am sooo sorry! I wrote the next chappie before I got your review! But I'll write a little starter story (or a prologue) and I'll see if you like that idea, ok? I'd love to co-write a story with you! **

**okay, heres another chappie!!!**

We were picked up by Ithiell in his fighter (turns out I was right; Jake used Ithiell to help the auxiliary Animorphs on the ground- and he was nearly destroyed in the process) and took us to the Pool ship. After all, we weren't anywhere near done yet.

We docked, then walked through the halls with Ithiell and Rtaia, towards what we hoped was the bridge. When we got there we were met with an amazing sight; the Yeerk slug that had once been Visser One crawling out of the Andalite's ear, as Ax and Marco, still all gorilla, watched him. Marco was eating a cookie, believe it or not, and I had to resist the urge to laugh at the sight of it all.

Tobias was there too, in human morph, and when he saw Rachel enter it was like one of those old romance movies; they ran to each other, arms open, and hugged and kissed and laughed in relief and then hugged and kissed some more.

"Ax, pick him up" A now human Marco said, holding a lockable briefcase open, seemingly trying not to barf at the sight of the two 'lovers'. But I knew he was glad; I guess we all were. I watched as Ax picked the slug up by two fingers, then drop him into the briefcase which Marco shut and locked. It was only then that the two even looked up at the three of us. Marco's eyes flashed something I couldn't read, but then it retuned to the usual mocking smile. Tobias saw this, still with his arms around Rachel, and rolled his eyes.

"He keeps saying how he's gonna have about a million jokes about you being a fly and a bear at the same time"

"Lame jokes I'm guessing" Rachel added, but smiled and winked at me. I think it was her way of 'saying thanks for saving my life'. I smirked and turned back to Marco, who was coming to greet me. Then I saw Rtaia rush over to Ax, and... well... she hugged him. Just wrapped her funny arms around his neck and hugged him. It was very unlike Rtaia. It was a second before Ax responded, putting his arms carefully around her and hugging her back.

"I think I'm not the only one in love with another species" Ithiell laughed, then went over to the remaining humans on the bridge, beginning to access the systems and see what kind of shape the ship was in. Marco, on the other hand...

"Well, I was gonna start with 'when bears fly', but that's just so clich_éd_, don't you think? But..." He took my hand and pulled me further into the room "I guess I'll go with the girl who is a fly and a bear. Very disgusting mix, by the way. Fly-bear. Not much better from my poo-bear, poodle mixed with bear, but... well, I guess you could say you'd scare a lot more people with that shape. Wings on a..."

"I told you, lame jokes" Rachel laughed. I noticed she'd let go of Tobias, but they were still close.

(I... I must access the communications array and carry out Jake's orders) Ax said as Rtaia let go of him, looking embarrassed the Chanaiben way; her head down a little and her tail tucked up against her.

"May I be of assistance?"

"Better not Rtaia" Ithiell interrupted "It might be good if the two of us aren't seen by these Andalites yet. Just in case they get the impression we're..." But she was nodding already, and they moved out of sight of the viewscreen, going off to the side to fiddle with the instruments. Ax did his thing, and minutes later there was an Andalite face on the screen. A very unhappy Andalite face, by the way.

He accused us of being Yeerks (no surprise there) and Ax told him who we were (with a little direction from Marco), and they still didn't believe us. Cassie came back as the two talked, and she went over and hugged her friend out of sight, then smiled and mouthed 'thankyou' while looking like she was about to bawl.

Then Jake came back, and then Alloran... the Andalite that had been infested by Visser One... decided to wake up. He took over talking for a bit, after getting Jake's permission, and then after Marco made a fool out of another Andalite much higher up on the food chain than the one we'd been talking to, Jake took over. I admired Marco's quick thinking. He saw we were going down, and he saved us.

Short version of what Jake said; It's over, we won your stupid war, and if you try and come blow us up your civilians will never stand for it and they'll rip you to shreds. So play nice and go along with what we say.

Then we flew the ship into space, blew up some bug fighters (we made sure Ithiells fighter wasn't touched) and some mean old farts of Andalites decided to take a trip around the Pool ship, ending up on the bridge. Not that I had anything against them, of course.

Jake explained to them what we promised the Taxxons and the remaining Yeerks and got a flat out denial. Then Marco got mad at them, and Jake looked like he was ready to just give in.

"We won your lousy war for you, you pompous old-" Marco erupted, but Jake talked over him. I put a hand on his shoulder, but he shrugged it off. I couldn't say I didn't feel exactly the same way. Cassie pleaded, but they still refused. And Jake looked about ready to give in, but I guess Marco gave him some words of encouragement, and he kept up the leader face. Ax then challenged one of the Andalites, and it was suddenly all in their hands. Poor Ax looked like he was about to faint as the other Andalites walked out of the room, all angry looking, since Jake wouldn't get off the bridge for them.

But before they left, one of them noticed Ithiell standing in a corner.

(Who... _what _are you?)

"Oh me?" he laughed "Why, I'm a Chanaiben of course. See if you can find that word in your history books anywhere"

The Andailte looked confused, then seemed to shrug it off and trotted away to join the others. I guess he wasn't willing to argue with Ithiell. After all, I saw the look behind Ithiell's eyes. He was ready to fight with them, that's how angry he was. The Chanaiben government had been brought into a war they shouldn't have been fighting, and with that, a lot of his old friends had died in the cross-fire. All because the Andalites were too stubborn to see their way out of the war.

They sent back a junior officer, who we exchanged polite words with, and suddenly... it really _was_ all over. A second war I'd fought... and that second war had now opened a whole universe to the human race.

But for some reason, a part of me didn't feel the victory there. I felt... regret.

_**---------------------------------------x---------------------------------**_

_One year forward..._

Well, things kind of blew by pretty quickly after that. We watched as the Animorphs gave the press a hell of a good story, and they gobbled it up like hungry Taxxons (excuse the expression). The team... _our_ team... watched from the cloaked fighter. After all, we didn't want to take the glory. They're the ones who had been fighting for over three years. We were just one of the side forces.

Robert and Amanda had been on the ground with the auxiliary Animorphs that day, and Amanda had been next in line for Visser One's dracon fire. Ithiell and Rtaia, possessing amazing combat and flight skills, had been able to block some of the Pool ships attacks, until a handful of Bug fighters was sent out after them, and they had to go into one-on-_four_ combat with the fighters, giving them a clear shot of the forces below. But we'd all survived, thankfully.

But... the auxiliary Animorphs...eight had been fried before Ithiell could get back and save them...

We watched as Tobias, now a hawk again, sat on Rachel's shoulder, and each of them kind of took turns answering questions and telling the story. Jake was sort of a little more silent than the rest of them. I knew the weight of the decisions he'd made was now all on his shoulders. He'd lost a brother, and nearly lost his cousin. He'd doomed thousands of helpless Yeerks...

But as they were coming to a close, Rachel stepped forward, no longer with the mocking swagger of someone who had just won a battle. She stepped forward and told them about us, and told them how I'd saved her and how they should be thanking us as well.

Then it all came down on us; our story. We were now (briefly) in the spotlight, and over time we told people bits and pieces of what had happened to us. Even Ithiell and Rtaia, who had reluctantly told the human race about _their_ race, and all about the difference between 'morphing' and 'shape-shifting'. Of course the press had the _dumbest _questions, but Robert took care of that. He just glared at them and told them exactly what we were all thinking.

A week after that, with the Animorphs story slowly sweeping the planet, and ours following just behind them, we had a memorial service for Tom and the auxiliary Animorphs. It was a sad day, but it was a good day for remembering. It was cloudy, but not raining, and the weather was coolish.

After that, things just seemed to blow by even faster. The Animorphs were a big thing, and Rachel, Tobias and Marco seemed to be on every talk show in history. Cassie and Jake however... didn't enjoy the limelight as much. Amanda, Robert and I got paid to go on some shows too. But we were just the side act- the Animorphs were the main show. They were _the_ celebrities. Marco seemed to enjoy it a lot more than the others too. Jake was still being the 'leader' and took his brothers death harder than anything. Cassie was his only real support. But eventually they both began to move on, with a lot of encouragement from Rachel and Marco (Jake tried to shut Cassie out- Rachel wouldn't let him) and had even begun to talk about marriage.

We (they?) kept our bargain with the Yeerks and Taxxons, so now there were a lot more snakes and that on earth. Hork-Bajir were given a nice place in a national forest to live, and Cassie and Amanda worked together to help them. I mean, when Amanda wasn't fulfilling her dream; becoming a singer. She was pretty good too. Robert... well, he went into the army after that. You know, talking strategy and tactics. Me? I went here and there, and helped Cassie and Amanda at times. Other times I thought I was heading for a place as an Olympic ice-skater, but that dream slowly fizzled out. I was finally appointed by the president of the United States to be a diplomat between humans and Chanaibens. After all, I got on pretty well with the ones I knew. I was a hero on that planet, and they had a lot of respect for the three humans who had kept their planet free. And with Amanda and Robert busy, I guess I was only one for the job.

Ithiell joined me in being a go-between diplomat. He and Rtaia were also beginning to start trades with the Andalites, and kept everything as clean and straightforward as possible. Rtaia and Ax...? Well, they were already engaged in the Chanaiben culture, even though some Andalites looked down on them. Others however, saw it as an opportunity to make a peaceful alliance with the Chanaibens. The Chanaibens themselves didn't really care; just as long as they knew they weren't being tricked by Ax, they were cool with it. Even Rtaia's brother Lowri. It took him a while, but.... he got used to it.

Marco and me? Well, we sort of drifted a part for a while, and we both didn't have time to talk as we were both focused on our own careers.

I bought a large house, which I shared with Amanda, Robert and Ithiell. At least, when we were all there together. It was big enough so we didn't get in each others hair when we were angry, but not 'mansion' kind of big. And it was cosy. My parents and siblings got a house out of the money I owned too. They hadn't been touched by the media after the first month of the story coming out. Which I liked, because it meant I didn't have to worry about them, at least not much.

Before I knew it, a whole year had passed. I was seventeen, and had been in more battles than a full grown man could ever possibly have been in. Seven years... man can time fly.

I'd heard about the trial of Visser One, and how they didn't want us to 'complicate' the testimony of the Animorphs and the other witnesses. Bah! What did they know?

I watched parts the trial on T.V as I worked on a speech for the Chanaiben diplomats that were scheduled to arrive in the next few weeks. I had to show these guys (who were up higher than anyone I'd ever met before) that we were a race that could be trusted to do trades with. It was hard work, but I knew it would eventually pay off.

I watched as Jake froze up at the beginning, but managed to get through it. I saw parts of the others trials too. In the end, twenty-two of twenty five convictions on the slug called Visser One passed. I was glad. I'd heard of the outcome just as I'd finished negotiations with the Chanaibens, and it had all gone successfully. Ithiell had been with me, so it made things go over a little smoother. But it worked, and I was glad as I drove home with Ithiell beside me. I'd gotten a free Porsche from all this, and although I would've preferred a Jaguar or a Ferrari, it was still a pretty cool car. I dropped Ithiell off at Amanda's studio (yeah, she owned half a studio now too) and went home alone.

I showered and changed, grateful to get out of the tight business suit and into some track pants and an average top. I grabbed an ice-cold can of coke out of the fridge, and shut the door...

"Hey Jade"

"Yah!" I yelped, practically tossing the drink at Marco. He caught it and casually opened it, taking a quick swig, smirking at my shock.

"Well it's nice to see you too"

"How did you..." then I noticed his clothes. His morphing outfit "Okay, what kind of bug did you use to get in here, and exactly how long have you been spying on me?"

"Always with the double questions. Jeez Lou_ise_!" He remarked, going and sitting at the kitchen table. I sat across from him, staring hard into his eyes.

"All right, all right. I did roach, and I've been here ever since you drove through your front gate" I was still staring at him when he added "Bugs don't do well in water. I've been in the kitchen waiting for you"

"Well... I'll trust you. For now" I snatched my can of drink back out of his hands, still staring at him. I wanted to know why he was here after all this time, and he knew it.

"Look... you know I don't do well with the... with that four letter word. After the war... I didn't know how to approach you"

"A simple knock on the door would've been nice"

He sighed, all the mock humour gone from his face. He just looked like an awkward teenage boy trying to figure out how to talk to a girl.

"Look," I began, reaching across the table for his hand, and he leaned forward and let me take it. "I know we've drifted apart since... since then. But... well, if you want, it doesn't have to stay that way"

"No, it doesn't" he replied, beginning to smile. Then he leaned further over the table and kissed me. Softly, gently, and as I...

_Splash!_ The drink tipped all over him, and he jumped back.

"Ooooh maaaaannn!!" he whined, trying to brush it off as it continued to spill out over the table.

"Sorry! Sorry! Sorry!" I yelped as I jumped up and grabbed something to wipe up the spill off the table, then picked the coke up and threw it into the sink. I'd gotten some of it on me too, but it was mostly on Marco. And he was jumping up and down like a drowned rabbit.

"Here" I offered, trying to squeegee the coke stains off his shirt, then trying to wipe it off him some more "Maybe I can find some extra clothes in Robert or Ithiell's room. They might be a bigger fit, but at least it's better than nothing"

I gave him the towel and started to run upstairs, but he grabbed my arm, pulling me in for a very long kiss. When he pulled back his chest was heaving, and I saw him shaking a little.

"I'll... I'll come up with you" he said softly. But I understood that face, more than anyone. And I have to admit, I was kind of feeling the same way too.

"All right" I croaked, nodding and shaking a little myself "Come on, roach-boy"

I took his hand and led him upstairs. Together, we left the rest of the world to sort itself out without us for a few hours.

**Sorry! I didn't know how else to end this chappie. Hope you liked it though. I might write another chappie, I dunno yet. You decide, ok? Cyas!**


	6. Never really over

**Okay, I lied. I'm doing one more chappie, then that's all, ok? Here it is...**

_2 Years Forward..._

"Geronimo!"

"Jerry-what?"

"Just come on, would you? We're gonna be late"

"We're already late"

"What?"

"Jerry's mole!" Phoebe yelled as she took a running leap on my back, and I caught her almost easily. Years of physical fitness and self defence classes had done me pretty well. She put her arms around my neck, and I supported her legs, beginning to piggyback her through the small marine base, with my two 'body-guards' trailing behind me.

The years had passed pretty quickly, and now terrorism had grown to become a big problem. Jake was the number one terrorist target, along with the rest of the Animorphs. Then us. I seriously hadn't wanted two people following me wherever I went, but Jake... and Ithiell to an extent... had insisted on it.

Actually, at the beginning of the day, it had been three. But when they made a joke about my six year old sister... well, let's just say I put my self defence training to good use. Now there were two, and neither wanted to make jokes anymore.

I was actually going to meet up with the old 'gang' again. Ithiell and Amanda had something to do before they came. Phoebe was here simply because she was spending the weekend with me. She'd grown, but like the girls in my family, she was still short. But... man... there are times when she can sound at least nine or so... she's a smart little cookie that girl...

Jake, Robert and Rachel all worked at the base. Jake to teach the anti-terrorism forces about morphing animals (since the Andalites gave us a blue box with very specific instructions for it), Robert to teach them tactics (as I said, he's good at stuff like that) and Rachel to give them tips on what you can do when your up against a wall and out of time (crazy and reckless). Tobias, believe it or not, had actually become a _nothlit_ in his own body, and him and Rachel were planning on getting married as soon as the weather was cooler. Marco had his own show, and had outrageous parties that I sometimes went to. Other times I was just too busy with the Chanaiben/human trade market. I was also doing a course in psychology at Uni. Cassie and Amanda were working on expanding the land for the Hork-Bajir colony (they were growing at an amazing rate) so I rarely ever saw them. Amanda had sort of giving up the singing idea, although she still owned her own studio. Ithiell and I occasionally still worked together, but now he was planning on working with the Andaites on a more full time basis (he'd gotten over the 'I hate you all' stage, and was actually enjoying it) Ax and Rtaia took charge of an Andalite ship (they were married anyway, so no one could tell Ax they didn't want Rtaia on board) and, along with Lowri and the Aerionna, went searching for any Yeerk ships that might have gotten away, including looking for the Blade ship.

So now it was the day we all met up again. I carried Phoebe as my two goons walked behind me, towards the door. I grabbed the doorhandle and turned it.

"Someone's missing" Phoebe suddenly said, but before I could react, the door was opened for me and Tobias's smiling face greeted me.

"Hey, fancy meeting you here" I said, smiling at him. He gave Phoebe a funny look, but seemed to shake off whatever he was thinking and stepped aside so I could enter. I did, and Phoebe slipped from my shoulders voluntarily. The room was just big enough for a table and just enough space you could move around it. Cassie, Jake and Marco were sitting, and everyone else was standing. I left the two guards outside the door and Tobias shut it behind us.

"What's with the runt?" Marco asked, leaning back on his chair.

"The_ runt_ is my sister. And the _runt_ can kick your sorry butt any time of the day"

"Oh really?" He raised an eyebrow.

"Phoebe?" I asked, turning to her. But she was smiling and nodding. With that, she ran at him, knocked him off his chair and started tickling him to death, with him crying out in surprise and then pleading with me to 'make her stop'.

"Well, I _did_ warn you" I said batting my eyes at him as Phoebe came running back to me, a big smile on her face. He got up, looking a little dazed, and picked his chair up off the floor. By then, Rachel, Tobias and Amanda were all in hysterics, and Jake, Ithiell and Cassie weren't far behind.

"Way to go sis" I told her, leading her to a chair to sit in. They all greeted me and sat down. Rachel had her usual smile, and Jake had a little distant look, but that evaporated as Cassie put her hand over his, and he smiled at her.

"So, long time no see" Ithiell began, sitting on the other side of me.

"Yeah. But where's..."

"Not here yet" Robert answered "Guess they're late"

As if by instinct, I looked down at Phoebe. She looked up at me, her eyes showing only innocence. I noticed Jake gave me a slight glance, but then turned his attention back to the rest of the group.

We all began talking about our lives, and how Amanda and Cassie had found a way to extend the borders of Hork-Bajir territory a lot more than they'd ever thought, and how Jake's classes were going really well...

And then a knock on the door changed everything.

"Yes, what is it?" Jake called. A young man, only perhaps a few years older than us, came in, looking a little worried. He looked at each of us, before turning his attention onto Jake.

"Sir, I have a report from the Chanaiben government... they asked that it be given to Jade to inspect"

"Couldn't this have waited?" I asked, looking curiously at him.

"Uh... no ma'm, they specifically requested you look at this straight away, it's extremely important" he said coming over to me and handing me a manila folder, then saluted me, then the others, before he left.

"Ithiell..."

"Yeah, I'd better look at it too" he replied as I opened it to read. He read over my shoulder, and I moved each page when we were both done. The others watched us in silence.

"Something's wrong" Phoebe said, and for a second I thought she'd seen it on my face...

But I looked up at the others, all carefully watching and waiting. Ithiell was now full on cursing in his native tongue, getting up and pacing the small front part of the room, then hitting a wall and yelling at it.

"What, what is it?" Cassie asked, leaning close.

"Well..." I took a deep breath, then continued "The reports say they... Ax and Lowri's ships... were following an unknown object. Possibly another ship, they couldn't be sure. But... the last transmission received from Lowri... they sounded like they were in trouble. And now... apparently they're lost in... in an unknown part of space, where neither Andalite or Chanaiben ships are allowed to enter. They... they don't know if they're still alive or not"

"WHAT?!!" Marco cried, jumping up and knocking his chair over. Jake and the others didn't look much better.

"Well _I'm_ not going to sit here and wait for them to find out. I'm gonna..." Rachel started raving, and Tobias wasn't far behind her. Robert turned to ice in his chair, then I saw him start to think hard about the situation.

"We... we can't just... Rachel's right..." Amanda's voice was tight, and Cassie put a hand on her shoulder.

"Jake?"

He had been staring down at the table, but now he turned his head to look up at me. And I saw his face was more determined than I'd ever seen it before. I also knew he'd found another purpose for living.

"Yeah, I heard. And I say we all go and save their sorry butts" With that, he smiled devilishly at me. I smiled back, understanding. We were going into certain death and unbelievable danger... but then again, there was nothing new with that scenario, now, was there?..................

**Now, here's the part where you make up your own adventure for them! Byz! Hope you enjoyed it. And I'll be back...**

**(Mean, aren't I?) hehehehehehehehehe....**


	7. Chasing ghosts

**I don't know why, but I've decided to continue this story. I guess I don't like leaving you with a cliff-hanger any more than I like reading stories like that. **

**So... here's some more for you, and if you have any suggestions, just say so. :)**

_7 months later..._

"You know, when Jake said 'let's go find them', I thought 'ok, I agree with that. When Amanda said 'let's go kick some butt' I began to think it was a little weird. But _this_... this is just insane!"

"Marco, I can take your whining any other time, but _not now_"

"I'm just..."

"Marco. Shut. Up" I said slowly, gripping my gun more tightly in my hands and peering cautiously around a stack of boxes. I knew they were there... I just couldn't see them. I turned back to Marco, who looked like he was about to say something else smart, but I reached over and clamped my hand over his mouth. I carefully looked out again, then rolled towards and behind another stack of boxes, crouched, then began to stand up carefully to see if I could spot...

TSSSSSEEWWW!!! Dracon fire cut straight through my chest. Straight through my heart.

"Session completed. Mission failed. You are dead" the computer said mechanically.

"Well no duh" I muttered, pulling the white training vest off and watching as Robert, Tobias and Rachel stood up from where they'd been hiding. They took off their vests too, dropping their training weapons.

"Good job Jade. Really. Now when we go into combat, you can get fried" Robert said sarcastically rolling his eyes at me.

"Well I was kind of distracted" I replied watching as Marco stood up from behind the boxes, and I threw my weapon at him. It missed, but barely.

"Hey! What was that for?!"

"For not taking this training seriously! You think it's all a game, but it's not!" I snapped at him, throwing my vest roughly onto the floor. I'd had it.

"Look, why don't we just come back in a few days" Tobias said levelly "Maybe by then we'll have our heads straight"

"Yeah, whatever. Say that to _him_" I jerked my thumb at Marco, then pushed a stray hair back out of my eyes and walked towards the door of the training room.

"Jade, wait!" Rachel yelled, "Remember you have another bridge shift with Amanda in four hours"

"I know" I said waving an ok and not looking back as I left the dark room, then out into the brightly lit hallway.

Seven months had gone by. Seven months of pointless searching and chasing ghosts in the far reaches of space. And my usual patient nature had gone out the door. I was aggressive... and even the smallest things just made me want to snap.

Ithiell had told us about a ship he had been building for the last year or so, but kept it under wraps because he didn't want the Andalites or the human, _or_ Chanaiben governments to know of its existence. At least, not just yet. He planned to create a ship made up of the technology of all three races. The result was a mix of the three, yet strangely looked surprisingly different than all of them.

How did he do it? With a lot of loyal friends and followers, and a hell of a lot of luck (it was built in space, orbiting one of the Jupiter moons)

It was a lot like the Aerionna, yet twice as big. It was off-white, with an arrowhead for the front, and the comical bat-like wings of the Chanaiben fighters at the back, facing forward. There was plenty of room for sleeping quarters, as well as a cafeteria, and even a few extra rooms, like the training room we were just in, as well as bathrooms and showers for us humans. Ithiell had also chosen his crew wisely. There were a mix of Chanaibens and Andalites, loyal to Ithiell (yeah, some Andalites _were_ loyal to Ithiell) as well as the eight of us. Thirty something people on the ship, all working for Ithiell (except us). The cafeteria stocked food for humans as well as Chanaibens, and there was a room where the Andalites could run and graze as well.

The ship itself... her name was the _Inaad_. Named after Ithiell's missing twin sister. I guess in some part of his mind he still believed he'd find her.

We had only made one real stop, and that was at the Chanaiben home world. They gave us all the information we'd need to find them, and we left. And ever since... we had been chasing ghost and shadows. I was just sick of it, and I wanted to find what happened to Rtaia and Ax, as well as Lowri and his faithful crew. Why would they follow an object into a part of space that neither species could enter into? It just didn't make sense. They were smarter than to risk destroying a treaty that...

"Jade!" A voice called out, and I spun around to face Robert.

"What do you want?"

"You should learn to just ignore him"

"Ignore...? Now why would I be taking suggestions from you?"

"It's not a suggestion"

"What are you, the captain? Well sorry, but I don't think you _can_..."

"Look, if we don't work on fighting with weapons we're gonna be blown in two in the first few seconds. We can't rely on morphing and shape-shifting unless we're close enough, and we need to be able to work together so we can _get_..."

"I _don't_ need a lecture from you about how to work _together_" I grated "After all, you didn't do much of that when the war... the _wars_, were still on"

"That doesn't mean I don't care..."

"Oh, you _care_ do you? You _care_?! Ha! I never knew a heartless..."

"I'm not your enemy anymore Jade. I care too much about you to..."

My hand was hitting his face before I realised what was happening. It left a bright red mark on his cheek. He hardly flinched. But that just made me even madder.

"You don't give a _damn _about anyone but yourself Robert. I've known you too long to not know what you're capable of. If you had said that when we were thirteen... I _might _have actually believed you. But now... coming from you... it means squat" With that little speech, I turned on my heel and walked away, back to my living quarters.

"I can say exactly the same to you Jade. I know what makes you tick too!" he yelled at my retreating back, but he didn't follow. I got to the living quarters, pressed the buttons to unlock it, then went in and shut the door behind me.

I stood beside the bed, and in front of the small mirror in the near-darkness, just looking at myself. I then rested my hands on the cool glass, leaning on it for support, and looked at the ground, doing my best to fight back tears that threatened to fall. He was right of course. I might know him... but that also meant he knew me. You couldn't get close to someone without having them a few of your secrets as well.

A few minutes later the door opened and shut behind me, suddenly reminding me that I'd forgotten to lock it. But I knew who it was, and I didn't move until I felt the cold hands through my singlet top, at the waistline.

"Jade, I'm sorry if..."

"Don't Marco. Please just... don't" I turned around to face him, looking at him through the gloom. He let go of me, and we just stood there.

"Look. I know what... we're all feeling that. But exploding every chance we get at each other isn't going to help us. And I'm sorry that... I'm just trying to lighten the mood, that's all"

"Yeah, well, whinging isn't going to do well if we're fighting against... I dunno, _some_thing. The thing that got our friends"

"We'll _find _them Jade. Just have hope"

"Sorry, but my hope is kind of gone right now" I sniffled, dropping down onto the bed. Marco sat beside me, taking my hand in his. Our fingers entwined, and it just made me want to cry. So that's what I did. I cried.

"Space is a big place remember? It might take a whole year, or _more_, to find them, but we will" he said softly, putting his arms around me as I put my head in my hands and cried. Months on this ship... it just amplified my emotions... and it made me worry about the others more. What if... what if they were dead? How could Ithiell cope, loosing another family? And what about Tobias?

"How can we just sit here, while they could be dead? How could we... we have to keep training, until..." I fought back more tears, pulling away from him.

"Yeah, I know. Look, my shift starts in two hours... so I'd better uh... leave you to sleep or something" He gave me a quick peck on the cheek, and started to go. Then he stopped and looked back at me.

"You gonna be ok?"

"If you... maybe... I don't know anymore" I muttered "Just... try not to..."

In an instant he was smiling at me again, a smile that even I could see in the low light.

"Now, I can't promise something like that. You know me"

"Yeah, sadly enough. I do" I said taking a deep breath, then getting up and hugging him tightly "Thanks for the support. You're not so bad"

"Think nothing of it" he laughed, then put a finger and thumb under my chin to lift my face to his and kissed me. It was long and sweet and gave me just the smallest bit of hope. But after that moment... let's just say he spent the next two hours with me.

_**-----------------------------------------------x-----------------------------**_

_I was a white tiger. And I was running. It was dark, and I didn't know where I was going, but the urge to run was so strong I couldn't deny it. All of a sudden I reached two tunnels. _

_**Choose Jade, **a voice said. I chose the right tunnel. And kept running. I couldn't stop myself. The tiger body should have gotten tired by then, but it didn't... I just kept going. _

_And then... I was no longer a running tiger. I was a human, looking down at a small child. She was crying. Her hair was almost black, and I couldn't see her face because she was facing away from me. She was curled into a little ball, crying into her hands._

_**What's wrong sweetie?**, I asked as soothingly as I could, leaning down next to her and putting a hand on her shoulder. I began to turn her around..._

_**A-hahahaha!!** She suddenly roared with laughter, turning to me. But by then she wasn't a little a girl any more, she was Crayak..._

"No!" I yelled bolting up in my bed, knocking the sheets off me. I was in a cold sweat, breathing heavily. Crayak. Another dream about Crayak. That big red eye... but he wasn't invading my dreams. I'd feel that. No. This was my own anxiety causing me to have these dreams.

It had been around two days since I'd blown up about the training session. Ithiell had assigned two of his 'lieutenants' to take over for us while all of us 'humans' had a good nights sleep. I thought it would be impossible to sleep. I guess I'd been wrong.

I rubbed my face, trying to get the image of Crayak out of my mind. I told the computer in my room to turn on the lights, then went over to the small sink in the room (below the mirror) and splashed water on my face. When I looked up... well, I looked as white as a ghost. I checked the watch I'd brought along. It read five am. Well, at least on earth in America it was.

I rested my hands on either side of the sink, taking deep breaths to calm my racing heart. It worked, at least a little. Then the lights in my room changed from white to yellow and I started to panic all over again.

"Yellow alert! All senior officers report to the bridge" came the command from the first officer named Genge. It was a joke, really. The 'senior officers' were the Animorphs and us. And we were younger than most of the crew on this ship.

I pressed the button to open the door to my room, ran out, nearly colliding with Amanda and then Cassie, and we all made our way to the bridge. Running, and barefoot. Not the best way to get around on a ship, but we didn't have time to worry about clothing and that.

We practically barrelled into the guys as we went, and all of us, including Ithiell, ran like a herd of mad cows to the bridge. We got there, finding Rachel was already there and dressed like something you'd see out of a teen magazine.

"What took you guys so long?" Rachel asked smugly as Genge gave her a sidelong look, then walked up to Ithiell.

"Sir, we found something you might want to take a look at"

"What is it?" Ithiell asked as we followed the two further into the room, looking up at the screen in front of it.

"It... the signature is... well, it's coming from that planet there sir. And the... well the signature matches... it matches a Chanaiben ship"

My heart leapt, I think at that moment we all had the same idea. Lowri's ship.

"Have you picked up any other ships?" Ithiell asked as he took his place on the bridge. The rest of us just kind of turned and looked up at the planet. It was a mottled grey colour, with specs of blue showing here and there.

(No sir. We have scanned the area and picked up no other ships within sensor range) a female Andalite by the name of Kayleese reported from her station. Unlike Andalites, Ithiell (and in fact all Chanaibens) weren't sexist. Both genders were treated as equals. Which I seriously liked and admired.

"All right then. Scan the planet. See if it's safe enough for us to take a look down there" Ithiell instructed.

"Toxic gasses, but they are being recorded as low risk. No other life forms being recorded on the planet. Nothing that can be seriously harmful to us" Came another's voice. It was only then that I saw the two Chanaibens and a male Andalite rushing onto the bridge, taking three empty stations.

I turned back to Ithiell, who was still thinking hard. And calculating the risks. I knew what he was thinking. Just because there weren't any readings, didn't mean there wasn't life down there. And whatever had gotten the Chanaiben ship down there, might be somewhere on the surface of the planet.

"Send a probe down there to collect some more information... and add a DNA sample in with it as well. Maybe some of the blood samples collected from the last planet"

"Sir, a..."

"It's a way of knowing for sure if something's down there. It might not respond to objects like the probe or a ship, but instead may react to the smell of blood sight of animal matter"

(Right away sir) said the Andalite male, his fingers flying across the console in front of him. He sent the command down to the engineering and sickbay, and a few moments later we saw the little probe (which looked more like a metal beach ball) start making its way down to the planet.

"It may not be a failsafe method, you know" Jake said, still in a grey shirt and his boxers. His hair was dishevelled but I don't think he even noticed it.

"Yes, I know. But it's better than nothing" Ithiell smiled wryly at him.

Minutes later, the report was basically the same. No life readings, and nothing had attacked the blood drenched probe. It was silent down there. The little camera in the probe picked up a grey, brown and slightly blue swampland. Solid rock here and there, but for the most part... just bogs and reed-covered swamp. Looked like something from an old horror movie.

"So... what do we do now?" Amanda asked, turning to look around at our sleep dishevelled group, all of us still wearing what we'd worn to bed.

"We go and investigate, that's what" Ithiell said.

"But... we can't all go, can we?" Robert. Of course.

"No, you're right"

"Sir, what do you suggest?" It was Genge, his eyes narrowed as if knowing what he was about to do.

"I suggest you and Keera take over for now. I'm going down there..."

"But... sir!" Keera was beside him now. She was a Chanaiben too, and third highest ranking on the _Inaad_. (Yeah, if you care...)

"Jake, pick three from your group, and I'll bring two of mine"

"Uh..." Jake looked at his friends "I think Tobias is out of this, cause if we run into trouble... yeah, and... I think Rachel, me and Marco. Sorry Cassie" he added quickly. She didn't seem too bothered by it, though. Only gave a small smile and nodded at him.

"All right... Jade and Amanda"

"_Me?_" Amanda yelped.

"Yes you. I want you with me. Sorry Robert, but I need someone who can work with us and follow orders" Ithiell said. Then he picked a couple more from his crew, and told us we had about twenty minutes to get ready then meet at the docking bay.

Nineteen minutes later, we were all assembled at the docking bay, where there was a specially designed docking ship waiting for us. Kayleese, another Andalite male, and two more Chanaibens joined us. Kayleese looked extremely nervous. I couldn't blame her.

We crammed into the small ship, and Asen, one of the Chanaibens that had come with us, piloted the ship slowly down to what we hoped was the Aerionna, and not some dessert mirage we were all seeing.


	8. Hidden danger

We went down, with the Genge keeping a very close eye on the second ship with the _Inaad's_ sensors.

"Nothing as yet sir. No life readings" he reported as Asen continued to descend down towards the ship. I felt my stomach lurch a little as we went down a little faster, then a funny feeling nagging at me. But I tried to ignore it as we got closer to the moss-covered ship. From the looks of it, it had been down there a while. Then I saw a familiar arrow-head...

"It _is_ the _Aerionna_!!" I cried as we began to see more of it.

"Yeah, but what brought it down? Another ship... or something from that planet?" Jake asked, biting his lip. It wasn't something I saw guys do often.

"Well... we won't know until we go aboard" Ithiell said, looking just as doubtful as Jake.

(I presume we will be taking the necessary security precautions) Kayleese said, looking at her commanding officer, her stalk eyes trailing over the rest of us.

"Yes Kay, we will" Ithiell assured her. He then manoeuvred his way to the back of the ship, then issued us with Jara guns, the Chanaiben equivalent of a Dracon beam or a shredder, I guess. Then he gave us little earpieces with a microphone that arched down toward the mouth. It could also be adjusted to suit human as well as Chanaiben heads. I saw Ithiell give Kayleese and the male Andalite something that looked like earphones, only with a little disc that connected to just above their cheeks.

"I want one of those" Rachel muttered as she fixed her own earpiece.

"Not likely to happen. They are specially designed to pick up thought-speak, and if worn by someone like you or I, chances are our brains would literally be fried" Ithiell explained to her as he got a headpiece for himself, adjusting it so it fit. We all did the same, fussing with it until it didn't feel like it was going to crush our brains or fall off the minute we let go.

"And what about the toxic gasses?" Amanda asked.

"Chances are they are harmless to us. Maybe a little smelly... but other that..." Asen trailed off, looking a little embarrassed.

"You mean like stink bombs?" Jake pulled a face "Oh yuck!"

"Well, we'll be going straight into the ship, and if we're lucky... it won't have penetrated the hull of the ship that deep. Emergency systems would also keep the breeches at bay by a force field. So..."

"When are we ever _that_ lucky?" Marco asked rhetorically.

"Hey, we're still alive. So I'd say that's a miracle in itself" Amanda said as the _Aerionna_ now loomed huge on the viewscreen. Asen moved the docking ship carefully, and we slightly bumped against the hull. Immediately the cutters on the outside went to work, cutting into the hull like a chainsaw, and making all of us grit our teeth. At least, those of us _with _teeth.

"Cutting complete. Docking clamps in place, and... pressurising the hull with... okay, that should do it" Asen said, smiling a little at his work.

"In other words..." Rachel trailed off.

"In other words we're attached to the ship like a leech" I supplied, smiling wryly at her.

"Oh"

(May I precede first, sir?) The male Andalite asked, bowing his head a little and showing respect. Ithiell nodded in return.

"Go ahead Ovatt, but be careful"

With Ithiell's permission, he clopped forward and towards the hatch. He opened it, stepped into the pressurised room that separated the two ships, then pressed the hatch to open and stepped into the darkness of the Aerionna.

(Sir, I believe we may need some artificial lighting as...)

"Yes, I see that Ovatt. We'll take some handheld torches with us" Ithiell said, going over and pressing a panel, revealing a whole rack of black and red earth torches.

"You've thought of everything, haven't you?" I asked in wonder.

"Not quite, but a lot" he said as we were all given one, and Asen joined us as we moved to the hatch opening. Kayleese gave Ovatt a torch, and they shared a look, before the two stepped into the darkness first, flicking the torches on and swinging them this way and that.

(Sir, it appears to be empty. The toxic gasses have not entered the ship as yet)

"Good. Let's get going" Ithiell said as we all stepped out into the darkness, and I felt a chill run down my back. Something was wrong. Something was very, _very_ wrong.

I turned my torch on and scanned the hall we were in. Ovatt was right. It seemed to be empty. The others did the same, and I was grateful there was now ten beams of light shining this way and that, making the place just a little lighter.

"Check your mikes. See if they work" Jake instructed, fiddling with his. I did the same, until I heard the others on the bridge of the _Inaad_ talking. But of course, Ithiell had made sure we could keep in contact with our friends in case something did go wrong.

"Testing... one, two, three" Marco tapped his mouthpiece, and I cringed at the sound that came from my earpiece when he did that.

"Ouch! Don't do that!" I hissed, jumping about five feet as I finally heard Cassie's voice in our earpieces.

"Hey guys? You ok?"

"We're all right. For now" Jake looked at Ithiell "Now what?"

"Well, I guess we start searching for answers. Maybe access the systems and see how much power we can feed into getting the lights to work" He thought for a minute, listening to the others on the bridge chattering between themselves, then looked up at Jake, who gave him a nod, then us.

"All right, here's what I think we should do. We split up into groups of two to search the ship. Marco and I will go to the bridge, since I might need you to go into the crawlspaces to pull some levers. Jade and Kayleese, you go to the engine room. If we're able to start up the ship, it could try and go into an overload, so I need you to be able to grab that coolant lever if that does happen. Amanda and Jake can check the sickbay, as well as check if we really _are_ all alone on this ship. Rachel and Asen can check the storage bays, and see if you can find anything that could tell us how the Aerionna ended up in this condition. Ovatt and Mulynn will check the living quarters... see if there's anyone there" He looked at each of us to make sure we understood. We all did.

"Okay, let's go solve a mystery" Jake said with a little laugh.

_**-----------------------------------------------------x-------------------------------**_

FWAAPP!!

Kayleese's tail cut straight into the engine rooms door, then cut again, just enough for me to be able to wedge my fingers through the cut she made and trying to pry them open. Kayleese helped, but it moved slowly, inch by inch.

"I wish we had Marco's gorilla morph right now" I groaned as I pulled with all my strength. Seconds later my earpiece crackled.

"Oh, how sweet. You miss me already" Marco chuckled.

"Hey, you've got the easy job" I replied as we finally got the door open enough for us to slip through. The door stayed wedged where it was. I think we were both glad about that. I saw Kayleese's chest heaving as I turned around and picked up the torches and guns from just outside the door.

"Not true. I have to jump into a shaft about three feet across, crawl..."

"So do I. And I just had to pull a door open" I retorted.

"Okay you two, enough competing. Jeez, how did you two ever become a couple?" Jake asked from somewhere else on the ship. I smiled and shook my head as Marco replied.

"I really don't know either buddy. Bad luck? Wrong place, wrong time?"

"You fell in love, it's as simple as that" Amanda said laughing.

"We did? Marco, did we fall in love? Gee, I didn't know that" I joked, watching as Kayleese gave me a funny look. I heard Marco and Amanda laughing at me.

"Well, we're in the bays. It doesn't seem like there's anything that suggests they were hit or anything. Asen says there's just a whole lot of metal boxes stored... kind of like spare parts and stuff. But there's no one here" Rachel interrupted, turning our attention back to our task. But she couldn't help but add "You two just make me sick"

"The bridge is empty too" Ithiell's voice "No one here"

"So, no one home huh? What the heck is going on?" Jake asked.

"If I knew, I'd tell you" Ithiell replied "Ovatt, Mulynn, did you find anything?"

(Ovatt here. Nothing so far sir. But we'll report in as soon as we find something)

"Good. Amanda, how are you holding up?"

"Um... all right" was her soft reply. I guess she snapped back to reality, just like we did.

"She's actually attached herself to my arm, and the rest of my arm is going numb" Jake told us. I guessed he wasn't lying either. Amanda can get a pretty good grip if she's scared enough.

"It's just... so dark, and I... sorry..."

"Yeah, we know. But don't worry, it won't be for long. Marco?"

"Almost there" his voice sounded strained as I looked up at Kayleese again.

"A minute more...." Ithiell told Amanda.

"It's ok. She's let go of me for now. We're walking around one of the rooms of the sickbay. Nothing much to see really"

"I'm good" Amanda tried to sound confident, but her voice quivered.

"Oh _man_! The damn thing's locked or something! Ithiell!"

"Here, try this" I heard something clunk, then that thing was moved as Marco thanked Ithiell for giving him whatever it was he gave him.

"Ahhh-!!" Amanda. And her cry sounded like it had been cut short.

"Amanda?" Ithiell and I asked in unison.

"I... I don't know what happened! She was just there, on the other side of the table... Amanda!"

"What?!"

"Amanda..." Jake paused, and I heard his breathing had become raspy "There's... her earpiece is here, and her torch...on the ground, but... Amanda!!"

"Where is she?! Where's Amanda!" I yelled at him, terrified now.

"But... there's nothing here! Nothing!"

"Jake, what happened? Can you tell if she was dragged off or something?!" Ithiell asked, and I heard Rachel let out a curse.

"I... I can't see her... oh crap! What was that?!"

"I _knew_ there had to be something here! Dammit!"

"What was what Jake?"

"I just saw something, moving in the shadows... too big to be Amanda..."

"Shoot it!"

"I can't even... ahhhhhhh!!!" I heard him firing, then static greeted my ear.

"Holy... Ovatt, Mulynn, forget checking the rooms, I want you to go straight to sick bay. You're the closest..."

Nothing. Nothing from them, anyway.

"Ovatt? Mulynn?"

"Forget them! I'll..." Ithiell cut Rachel short.

"No! Hold your position. You too Asen. You're too far away, and we don't know... Jade, Kayleese? Do you think you can...?"

"We'll do what we can" I replied as we both slipped back out of the room, with me leading the way to the sickbay.

"What about...?"

"You and I will keep working on the lights. You got it?"

"Uh... yeah. Done! Try that"

"All right... there!" Suddenly, the hallway filled up with bright light, almost blinding us.

(How much further?)

"This way. Come on!" I lead her down another hallway, running as fast as my body would let me go. I grabbed my gun, readying myself to shoot anything that came at me. Kayleese was right beside me, pulling a head a little every now and then.

Finally, we reached the door that had been half opened buy Jake and Amanda, but there was hardly any light in there.

"Kayleese?"

(I'm ready)

"Okay, let's go then" I stepped forward with my torch and gun in hand, peeking carefully around the corner of the door. I aimed the beam of the flashlight here and there, but saw noting besides some wires hanging down, sparking every now and then. I pulled my head back out, leaning on the side of the door and taking a deep breath, looking at Kayleese and nodding to let her know we were going in.

"Jade? Be careful"

"We will"

(Shall I go first?) Kayleese asked, readying her tail and stepping forward.

"All right, but be careful. And keep your gun levelled so your ready for anything" She nodded, then stepped carefully towards the door, peering in, then stepping confidently through, her tail blade raised and ready for an attack. I slipped in after her, keeping alert, my heart pounding in my chest.

(There does not seem to be...) that's when we saw it. A shadow... not ours... darting out of sight to the left of the room.

"Amanda? Jake?"

(What was that?)

"I wish I knew?"

"What? What is it?" Rachel's voice now.

"Something in the shadows... moving very fast...I can't"

(It has me!) Kayleese suddenly cried, and I jerked my head to see something like a black void wrapped around her middle, pulling her away from me. Her hooves skittered on the floor and her arms pushed away from it with all she had.

"Hold on!" I yelled, dropping my torch and preparing to shoot. But it was too late. Not even her tail stopped the thing from getting her.

"What's going on, what was it?!"

"Something just got Kayleese! I... I don't know what... I... NO!!"I yelled as it started coming at me, and I raised my weapon...

Wham! I was down! The gun skittered away from me... I was helpless.

It grabbed my legs, pulling me back into the darkness, and I screamed. I tried to pull the thing off me... but it was too strong! Then more blackness... surrounding me! Choking the life out of me!

I struggled, but it was hopeless. I lost consciousness with the others screaming my name...

**And there you go. More of it. Next chappie... you'll find out what the black thing was... hehehe... I am so nasty!**


	9. helpless

**galaxytree: oh, sorry if i confused you. I mean when you get hurt in your own form. Not when you're in another. Thanks for showing me that mistake. Kudos to you! (okay, i don't really know what that _means_, but it _sounds_ good) **

**Uhh... I might give this a rating, just to be safe. For the slightly gross factor, I guess. Criticism appreciated. **

The first thing I felt when I regained consciousness was gravity pulling me down. Then cold metal on my wrists. I was hanging off something. Something almost directly vertical.

Groggily, painfully, I lifted my head and opened my eyes, looking down to see my ankles were bound by thick metal rings, attached to what looked like a metal table. I leaned back, and found that I was right, then looking up and turning my head to see the rings around my wrists as well. Another had been placed around my stomach, I noticed as well.

Suddenly, I wasn't so groggy.

I remembered everything, up until the point where I'd blacked out...

_Is this death? Am I dead?_ I thought stupidly.

I looked up, nearly gasping with what I saw next. There was another table, a lot like mine... and on thing on it... it was Jake! He was strapped, like me, only he wasn't awake. His head was down to his chest, and his hair fell over his face.

I then looked around the room, realising this was definitely _not_ the Aerionna. I looked more like a surgical room, all metal... only there were a lot of dark spaces here and there... and it just made me shiver...

Beside me, I saw what I hoped was Kayleese. Arms were strapped down, like mine, and her bottom half was turned sideways, to allow for the locks on all four of her hooves. Her tail had been pinned down in the same way as well.

"Jake" I whispered, then in a slightly louder voice... "Jake! Wake up!"

Beside me, Kayleese stirred instead, turning her head sideways to look at me.

"Kayleese? Are you all right?"

(Hurt... stomach... took her away... be careful... mad creature...) She seemed to fall back into a deep sleep. Her head drooped, and her stalk eyes lowered.

"Took who..." Then I saw something on a flat table beside her. It looked like a half formed Andalite baby... and then I realised what had happened...

"Oh god" I gasped, turning back to her and finally saw the surgical stiches across her lower stomach. The thing... had stolen her baby!

My eyes darted around the room. Left, then right... and I caught sight of something else on another table that I really didn't want to see. It was Mulynn. Or, what was left of him. He was splayed out in pieces, just like what someone would do with a science project or something...

I turned my head away and gagged. Then I threw up, getting some on my shoulder. What a sick creature...

"Ah, ssso you're awake" Came a voice, and I tensed up. Then whatever it was stepped into view, and I had to resist the urge to gag again.

It looked like someone had crossed a human-like creature with a plant. It had what looked like two arms and legs, but the rest... were vinelike tentacles. How many I couldn't be sure, but let's just say I lost count at about twelve. And they seemed to be able to grow and retract. The head was fairly human looking, only it was like a dried prune, and the eyes were black pools. A lot like the rest of it. Only, it seemed to be oozing some sort of tar-like material, and it dropped in buckets to the floor like dog saliva. The legs were more like tree-trunks... big, and ending in four root-like toes. The mouth itself... human, and the lower jaw slightly jutted out, like an ape, only each time it spoke, more of that black tar stuff oozed from its mouth.

"Who are you? _What _are you? And why are we here?"

"Why, you are my experimentsssss of coursssse"

"Experiments? For what?!"

"All your ssspeciesss are sssooo interessssting to me. I like to know how you... how you function, basssically. Thissss creature..." It pointed to the mess on the table, and I deliberately looked away "Wassss quite intriguing. I learned much from it"

Then it sauntered over to the Andalite baby in the jar "Quite an amazing sssspecimin, don't you think?"

"No, I don't. I think it's sick that you took her child, and I think it's sick that you think of other sentient creatures as experiments" I spat out, mostly terrified, but a little angry too.

"Sssssentient? You are not ssssssentient, you are..."

"I don't care what you think I am! Let me go!" I yelled at it, but it just turned and made its way over to me. I pressed myself against the steel table behind me as it came close to me, then reached out its hand and grabbed a handful of hair. It didn't hurt me, it just... held my hair, examining it. Then it let go, leaving some of the tar stuff on my hair, and it dripped down onto my shoulder. And it stank.

"You will be sssssaved for a different experiment. The other of your ssssspecies was not..."

"Oh god, what did you do with her?!!"

It smiled with the sick mouth, then pointed to a part of the room I hadn't noticed before. There was a tank, about twice as tall as an average human, and about three metres squared. It was filling up with water, and... Amanda was in there! She was banging on the glass above her, desperately trying to break it.

"Shark Amanda! Go shark!" I yelled to her, and she finally turned her head and saw me. She looked shocked, but then nodded and slipped under, closing her eyes and concentrating. I breathed again when I saw her start to shift and change. She was going to be all right.

The creature looked confused, then turned back to me curiously.

"I did not know you _humansss _could do thissss" it said, coming close and looking into my eyes "Can you do thissss?"

I said nothing. It looked a little annoyed, then walked off to look at Amanda. Where was Ovatt? Did he turn out like Mulynn, or was he still alive somewhere?

From the other side of the room, I saw Jake start to stir and lift his head a little. Then I think he remembered it all too, and his head shot straight up. He looked at me, then looked around, and then looked at me again.

"What... where... _huh_?"

"All I can tell you is that that... that _thing_..." I jerked my head toward the disgusting creature "...thinks we're lab rats"

"What?! Have you...?" He stopped talking when the creature came back around to look up at him, touching his cheek, then grabbing a few strands of hair like it had done with me, and let go. The tar was now on him, and he struggled to wipe it off his cheek using his shoulder. It worked... at least a little.

"What are you? Why did you bring us here?" He demanded, but the creature just walked off, then toddled over to me, seeming to consider something.

"Different genderssss.... am I correct?"

"I'm not telling you anything" I spat. It seemed to ignore me, then looked from Jake to me... and smiled. Then it went over and grabbed the glass jar with the baby in it, and stood halfway between me and Jake.

"Different genderssss... create this? Can different genderssss of the ssssame sssspeciessss create thissss? Or doessss it need to be two different sssspeciessss?"

"You..." Jake looked over at Kayleese, then at me, and I nodded grimly. Then he seemed angry.

"You took that... from Kayleese... you sick _freak_!"

"Ah... never mind..." it ignored us both, putting the jar back down, then disappearing into a dark corner for a moment, before returning with some sort of weird object. It looked like a scanner you see at grocery stores or something, only with two thick metal prongs on either side of it. It came over to me, pushed a button on the left side of the table I was on, and the thick metal ring around my stomach retracted. It lifted my shirt a little, revealing a slit of my stomach, then stuck the prongs unceremoniously into me. And then... the pain!

"Ahhhhh!!!!" I screamed in agony, wishing I could roll up into a ball and stop the pain, at least a little. But I couldn't do anything except writher in pain while the prongs felt like they were electrocuting me from the inside, seeming to be trying to pull something out of me.

"Stop it! Leave her alone!" I heard Jake yell from a far off, and then...

And then the pain stopped. I sagged, gasping for breath as the prongs were removed, and the metal ring that had been around my stomach slid back into place. I stared down at the thing who smiled as it looked at its instrument, then looked back up at me. I felt like something had been ripped from my stomach... it killed!

"Jade! Are you all right?!" Jakes shrill cry forced me to lift my head, at least enough to look up at him. I managed a weak nod before my head dropped back down again, and my eyes once again landed on the thing.

"Ssssince you refusssse to ansssswer my quesssstionssss... I will have to remove ssssome of your DNA" It looked a little disappointed, then sauntered over to Jake.

"No you won't. I'm not going to let you..." he was cut off as the thing stuck the prongs in him, and he felt the same thing I had been feeling. His scream cut through me, and I couldn't even cover my ears to keep the sound out.

(Jade? Jake? Are you guys all right?) I looked over at the tank, seeing Amanda was now a tiger shark. But I guess the look on my face told her enough.

(Oh jeez, this is bad! Look, I'm going to try and contact the others... see if they can hear us. If they can, it means were not that far away from the Aerionna)

That thought hadn't occurred to me. But I gave her a slight nod, and I guess she turned her attention on calling out to the others. I didn't hear it though. I was too busy watching as the thing frowned again, and behind it, Jake slumped with his head down. I heard him gasping for air.

"How dissssapointing. I guessss I will have to find out for mysssself" Then it smiled.

"Perhapssss now I will be able to perform my experimentssss on you now" It turned, and walked away, and I thought I heard a door sliding open and closed. I turned back to look at Jake, who was still recovering from the shock. He looked back up at me, and nodded.

"Go something small, then reverse the effects. We still have... we still have to get Amanda and..."

"Yeah, I know" I focused my mind on the image of a fly, beginning my rapid shrinking immediately. I saw Jake had the same idea. When I was finally small enough, I yanked my arms free, pulled my legs out, and buzzed my still forming fly wings down towards the ground. With that, I became human again, watching as Jake demorphed as fast as he could, leaving behind his regular clothes and ending up in his morphing outfit. He quickly gathered his clothes and put them hurriedly on as I went over to Kayleese, looking until I found three buttons to release her. I pushed the first, and her arms were freed. She swayed a little, but the metal strap around her upper waist stopped her from falling to the ground. I pushed the bottom button and her legs and tail were released.

"Jake, I'm gonna need your help or she's gonna fall!"

He dove over, braced himself to grab her and I did the same, pushing the final button and she fell into our arms. We took her weight, but barely.

"Kayleese! Kayleese, wake up! You're free!" We put her on the floor, and Jake stayed with her as I ran over to Amanda, warning her to be prepared as I grew just enough, and slammed the tank with tons of rhino force. It cracked, then the water pressure finally got to it and it broke, sending glass and water everywhere. Jake had to lift Kayleese's head just enough so she didn't drown, then splashing a bit of water on her face to wake her up a little. Amanda and I became ourselves, walking over to Jake and Kayleese, who was slowly starting to become aware of her surroundings.

(What... where am I? Oh the pain...)

"I know your hurt, but we really don't have time for that now. Do you have a bug morph of some kind?"

(I... yes... fly...)

"Good. We need you to become that Kayleese. Can you do that for us?"

"Why? What do you have in mind?"

"We need to get out of here, but I'm sure if we go out fighting that thing will just capture us again. So I suggest we find a way out of here and a way to get back to the others"

(I believe I may have a way out of here) Came a voice, and the three of us tensed up. Kayleese was still pretty out of it.

Then I saw blue and tan fur emerge from what looked like a cockroach body, and before we knew it, Ovatt was standing in front of us.

"What... where were you?" Amanda demanded.

(I was... I was caught, along with Mulynn. But I managed to escape. Mulynn thought it would be best to stay and talk to the creature... he was a fool)

"But _where_ were you?" She pressed.

(I have been searching this complex for a way out. I was going to come back for Mulynn... but by then it was too late. The creature had...) He looked over to the table, and Jake followed his gaze. Ovatt then came over to Kayleese, bending his upped half down and taking her hand (Kayleese?)

(I... it took her away from me... I'm sorry, our child...)

(It is all right Kayleese. But we must leave here immediately. I am sorry... I did not know the creature had gotten you too) He turned one stalk eye to look at Jake, then the other to look us.

"Yeah, we kind of guessed"

"So how do we...?"

BAAAMMM!!!

An explosion shook the room, sending Amanda and I sprawling.

(I forgot to mention that I created something that would explode and distract the creature further. But it will not last long. We must hurry)

"Wait!" They turned to look at me.

"We can't let that thing keep our DNA Jake. I know what that thing plans to do now!"

"What? Why?"

"Because... I read in a book once... the cells from the stomach wall would probably be the best choice if you wanted to make... to make clones!"

BAAAAAMMMM!! BAAAAAMMM!! More shockwaves, and we turned to look at Ovatt.

(I only set one off. I did not...)

At that second we heard a loud clunk from above us, and then a grizzly and a gorilla dropped from above.


	10. What the heart knows

Well, the others had found us by using the _Inaad's _sensors to locate us. After all, we were the only life forms on the planet. The 'complex' Ovatt spoke of? Well, it was right under the Aerionna, and guess where the thing poked a hole through? You got it, the sickbay. So we all emerged from the hole as things that could fly, and when we were ourselves, Ovatt and Kayleese walked off together. We couldn't save their child... and I'd say that was the saddest thing about all this.

Rachel and Marco had managed to set off two more bombs in another room, where the thing had been in (as well as Jake's and my DNA) and destroyed it, as well as the DNA samples.

They left, and we all managed to cover up the hole with tables and stuff, hoping Ithiell would be able to put a force field around the ship when he knew we were safe (we'd all lost our little communicating thingys, so we couldn't directly talk to him anymore) and walked to the bridge of the Aerionna, all of us a little more beaten from the experience. Jake had lost his outer clothing again, but that didn't seem to mind him much.

When we had met up with Ithiell and Asen, we all went back up to the _Inaad_, where Ovatt and Kayleese walked off, with Ithiell instructing everyone to leave them alone for a while. Cassie ran and hugged Jake like there was no tomorrow, and I saw Amanda and Ithiell seemed to be a little to the side of our strange group. I still felt like I'd pulled a few muscles or something, but I hoped that would wear off eventually. Genge and Keera reported that the creature, technically, was not living. It was a plant, and sensors didn't pick up plant life forms.

Ithiell then sent repair crews down to the Aerionna, and they began to speed-fix it. One crew found that the emergency ships in the Aerionna's docking bay were gone, and we guessed (well, we hoped) that most of the Aerionna's crew had gotten out alive. They also found the engines had been shot at which might have explained how it got down to this freaky planet. It was shot at, and when they lost engine power, it was pulled down by the gravity of the planet. They'd escaped just before the outer hull began to burn. And... hopefully, Ax's ship had picked them up.

But that still didn't explain what happened to the Aerionna, _or_ Ax's ship. _What _had been shooting at them? And _why_ were they in this part of space? It just left more questions than answers.

Ithiell had sent the three of us to the _Inaads_ sickbay to be checked over. For all we knew, the thing could have done more damage than we thought it did. Jake was fine... whatever else the thing may or may not have done, morphing had repaired it, and he was as good as he was when we got the call that morning. Amanda had an unknown substance in her system from the water, but they had managed to remove all of it, even going down to the molecular level to make sure. As for me? Well, I was right; that creep had taken cells from my stomach lining. I guess it thought if we weren't going to co-operate, it would just have to create more of us to experiment on. The 'doctors' and 'nurses' gave me something close to Panadol to take, since there was really nothing else they could do. Everything else was fine with me.

Ovatt and Kayleese went too, and they checked out as fine. Although... Kayleese was distant, and Ithiell ordered her and Ovatt to have some time off. To take it easy and relax for a bit. I just hoped it would help them a bit.

We had a kind of memorial/funeral for Mulynn, with all of us paying our respects to the brave but lost member of the _Inaad_ crew. Lest we forget.

Thirty-something hours later I was assigned to bridge duty with none other than Robert himself. He didn't say anything when I came onto the bridge and sat in one of the spare chairs at a console off to the side. I relaxed back into it, and just tried to relax. Robert was sitting in the 'captains' chair', watching as the two Chanaibens and three Andalites worked on the bridge in front of us. I watched too, vaguely aware that we were receiving reports from the crews on the Aerionna. This was repaired... this may need to take some more time... this was almost linked to that...

"Jade?"

"Don't talk to me"

"But I..."

"I said shut up"

"Actually, why don't you shut up and listen to me for a minute" I turned to look at him, blushing involuntarily when I saw him staring straight back

"All right" I said tightly "Go ahead, talk. It doesn't mean I'll listen"

"Look, I don't know for sure what went down there" He started, turning back to the others when I'd outstared him "But I know it sounded pretty bad. You were scared, I heard it. But you've got to understand, what I'm trying to do now is to bring us all together as a..."

"As a what, as a family?" I sneered. He ignored me. Or, at least, I thought so

"... as a group, and as friends. We need to rely on each other now. There's not going to be anyone coming to save us if we do die out here, so we've got to make sure we do this right, or not at all"

"Do what right? _What_? We're going to find our friends in a part of space we really shouldn't be in, who are probably dead already. What do _we_ have to do _right_?"

"Work together"

"Oh here we go, this working together thing again" I stood up, fighting the urge to just walk from the room. But I still had an hour to go on my shift.

"Well, if it saves our lives..." he trailed off, seemingly not to notice me as I walked over to one of the Andalites on the bridge, looking over his shoulder. One stalk eye was pointing back at Robert, and the other one was following me.

"Yeah, whatever Robert. Go preach to someone else" I started to walk towards the door, but he got up and stopped me, grabbing my arm none too gently.

"Let go of me!" I snapped, fighting to pry his fingers loose. I cut his hand with my nails, and it started to bleed... but he didn't let me go.

"You see, this... _this_ is what I'm talking about. You walk away from me every time Jade, _every_ time I try to talk to you... to try to tell you what it means to me if we could just..."

"Robert. Let. Go"

"Not until you hear me out"

"I've heard you out! But you just keep spinning the same line of B.S that you always do!"

"Jade!"

"Let go of me you prick!!" I wrenched my arm free, and we just stood and glared at one another.

(Uhh... sir? Ma'am?) An Andalite female asked, looking a little embarrassed as we both turned to look at her.

(We... we have a report that the repairs on the Aerionna have been completed)

"All right" Robert said, walking over to the chair he'd been sitting in, and pressing a button on the panel beside it.

"Ithiell to the bridge. We've got some good news for you"

Ten minutes later he was there, looking a little embarrassed, but took his position and when Robert told him the news, started belting out commands like a good captain would. I watched as the Aerionna began to rise from the ground, slowly but surely, with the moss and vines that had overgrown it snapping off and being burned away. The docking ships were moved to the inside of the bay, and the ship began to lift faster off the ground to join us in orbit.

"All systems fully operational sir" Genge said triumphantly from the Aerionna.

"Good, now let's get moving shall we? But be prepared to evacuate if the ship begins to have problems, all right?"

"Yes sir. Moving off as soon as you give the signal"

"All right then, let's go" Both ships began to move off, with the _Aerionna_ following behind the _Inaad_. It was only then that I dared to turn back and look at the others... and Robert.

"Ithiell... if you don't mind... I'm going to head off now, and maybe catch some sleep or something"

"Ok Jade. Good night... or something like that" He smiled at me, and I smiled, and nodded, then headed off the bridge, with a feeling like Robert was watching me leave. But I knew... in spite of how I felt, he was right. It was going to take all of us working together to beat whatever took down the Aerionna the first time... and took our friends from us.

I shivered a little when I was out of sight and went to check on Amanda. She looked a little untidy, but other than that... she was all right. Her eyes seemed a little more distant than normal... but I brushed it off as a bad dream or something.

"What do you think?" She asked me when I'd told her what happened.

"I think he's right, but..."

"But you don't want to admit it" She sighed "Jade, when will you ever learn to just let go?"

"Let go of what? I mean, all this time Robert has been... you know. And now he turns around and says 'hey, I care about you, let's be friends?' sorry Mandy, but I can't just..."

"Wait a second, when did he say he cared about you?"

I sighed, and told her about after the training session.

"It could mean more than that, you know Jade"

"Like what?"

"Like... he loves you, and he's just too afraid to admit it"

"What?!" I yelped practically leaping off her bed like it was full of snakes.

"I... don't worry about it Jade. Now, I think I'm going to have a shower. I can still smell that thing on me after all this time"

"Yeah, me too" I added, but soon left her alone so she could go have her shower.

Her words went through my mind again and again when I reached my own room. All this time... could he? Was it true? Could he...

"No" I whispered as I lay down on the bed, staring up at the ceiling. I shook the thought from my mind, dismissed it, instead turning my attention on what could have happened to our friends. We were going... where we hoped... was the right direction. But we couldn't be sure. Marco was right; space was definitely a big place. A lot of it was still pretty much unexplored, even by the most advanced races like the Runchak.

At least, by the most advanced races we knew of. Who knew what else lay lurking out there? Like that tar-tree creature that nearly chopped me up and used me as its own test subject. I shivered again at the thought, then kicked off my shoes and changed into my long daggy black night-top, slipping under the blankets and curling myself up into a ball, with the images of the past two days still playing vividly in my mind.

_**---------------------------------------------x--------------------------------**_

"What are you? My mother?"

"No, your boyfriend. Now come on, eat this" he pushed a bowl of roast chicken and pasta at me.

"But I'm not..."

"Jade, Amanda told me you haven't eaten for a week. Now come on. That's all I'm asking you to do. Unless... you want me to _torture_ you"

"Torture me? How could you _possibly_ torture me?" I looked at Marco, not quite believing him. But he just smiled mischievously at me.

"Like this" With that, he began to tickle me under the arms, and I laughed and tried to squirm away from him.

"Okay! Okay! I'll eat!" I managed to get out through fits of laughter. He stopped tickling me, pulling the plate closer to me and giving me a fork to eat it with. I took it, and he relaxed when I started to eat, moving back just a little and turning on his chair so he could eat his own bowl beside me.

One more week had passed, as you might have guessed, and I hadn't eaten for the obvious reason that I'd been thinking too much about everything. About the tar creature, about Kayleese and Ovatt, and poor Mulynn... and about Robert. We hadn't spoken since then, but I passed him on the halls once, and I couldn't get up the nerve to even look at him. I didn't know what to say or do anymore. It was unnerving to think that about him... even though Amanda could be all wrong about it. After all, she did seem a little dazed...

I looked around as I ate. Rachel and Tobias were getting their food from the counter, and here and there were Chanaibens chowing down on bowls of something that looked like purple and yellow fruit. But it was mostly empty, and everyone else was either asleep or on the bridge or training. I guessed Tobias and Rachel had just come from the training room, as they looked really tired.

They came and sat with us, and the three chatted for a while, before Marco and I finished our meal and headed off to the training room. We went in, surprised to find Robert, Jake and Cassie were already there, training away.

"Good one guys" Robert muttered as the computer announced that the training session was 'paused'.

"Sorry. We didn't know anyone would be here" Marco said as we each got a vest and a weapon, turning back to them when as we put the vests on.

"Well, next time... just be more careful" He sighed, and Cassie and Jake just smiled at us.

"Can we continue? I'd really like to get this over with before my bridge shift starts" Jake said as we took the door shut, and the commuter telling us to resume. We each took a position, listening as the others did the same. It was basically to avoid the computers fire, as well as to get to a specific place in the room. Simple enough when you think about it... until you actually get to doing it.

I dove behind a stack of boxes as Dracon fire barely missed me. I fired blindly, rolled, fired again and backed up behind another stack of boxes. I hit something, turned, and aimed my weapon. Aimed it straight at Robert, who had mirrored my position.

"What are you...?"

"Look, I just want to say... you're right, ok?"

"But..."

"Now shut up and let's get this over with" I moved around him, peeked out behind the boxes, then dove towards another stack, closer to our target. I aimed, fired again, and...

"Session completed. Mission failed. You are dead" the computer voice cut through my thoughts. I turned to look back... and I saw Robert standing, just looking down at me. The lights came up and we all stood up, with the other three looking strangely at me and Robert. More strangely at Robert than me.

"You just got fried Rob. What's going on?" Jake asked as he took his training vest off, his eyes glued to Robert.

"I... it's... never mind. Thanks Jade" he said, smiling sadly before he dropped his weapon, removed his vest, and walked quickly from the room. I turned back to the others. Cassie and Marco were looking strangely at me. Jake was scratching his head and yawning a little.

"Well, I'm heading off. I've got to get some coffee or something..." he said, then walked out as well. Cassie and Marco hadn't moved.

"What did you say to him?" Cassie asked.

"I just told him he was right about... never mind. Forget about it" I felt my cheeks go hot, and I turned and looked away from them, then pretended to be more interested in getting my vest off.

"What about?" Marco this time. I couldn't look up at him.

"Look, we had a bit of a fight the other day, all right? It was nothing"

"It doesn't seem like nothing" he replied, and I heard the door open and I looked up to see Cassie step out, waving a little goodbye before she left. Now it was just me and him. I looked at him... at his suspicious face.

"It was, all right. All I did was admit that I was wrong. And... well... I guess that throttled him, ok?"

"Are you sure that was all? Are you sure it wasn't... something more than that?"

"What are you suggesting?"

"I'm not suggesting anything"

"Yeah, right. You think I..."

"As I said, I'm not suggesting anything"

"Then why are you looking at me like I have! You think I'd ever do that to you Marco? Well, you're wrong. I love you too much..."

Marco snorted, then realised I was serious "I love you too Jade, it's just... you two seem to have a really rocky history together..."

"Yeah, well that's all it is. History. We've been through hell and back with one another, but that's the past"

"It doesn't seem like it is to him"

"But that's him! That's the great _Roberto_, all right!"

"Jade, I didn't say that..."

"Look, are you done busting me for something I didn't... and I'll never... do, cause if you are, I'd really like to..." I was cut off by the lights in the training room turning red.

"All senior officers report to the bridge immediately! We have a situation!" Keera's voice snapped through the intercom, sounding almost panicked.

Marco and I took one look at each other, then ran towards and out the door, then heading straight for the bridge, with me having a sinking feeling. The kind of feeling when you know everything's about to go downhill.

And I'm guessing Marco was probably thinking the same thing.

**Don't worry, it's not the last of my tar-creature. Only... can anyone give me any ideas about what to name it? Closest I've got is tar-tree. Or tar thingy. Ok, thanks, byz!**


	11. Lost soul

**Oh you are _so _gonna love this chappie! And my special little twist will be quite a treat for you!!(rubs hands together and laughs evilly)**

We ran toward that bridge like there was no tomorrow. Which... probably wouldn't be if we didn't survive the next few minutes. Once again we found ourselves on the bridge in a crowd with the others.

"Okay, what's going on?" Jake asked as we looked around at the panicked Chanaiben and Andalite crew, then up at Keera, who stood at her full height, looking up at the screen. Ithiell and Amanda still weren't there.

We followed her gaze, and found ourselves looking up at something that I could only guess as a ship. It looked like a mase... or a big ball with spikes sticking out. Only, this mase didn't have a handle. Instead, it had what looked like a dorsal fin attached to the top of it, a lot like a dolphins fin. On the sides there were what looked like two spider legs facing forward, and I could only guess that that was either the way they steered this big thing... or their weapons.

(Sensors say it is twice the size of the _Inaad_) an Andalite male reported, and Keera finally looked down at us. She looked scared. Her ears were folded up against the sides of her head and her dark blue eyes were wide.

Ithiell arrived a few seconds later, looking like he'd run the whole length of the ship... then I guess he saw the screen, because his eyes narrowed.

"Report!" He snapped as he took over for Keera.

"It is double the size of this ship sir... the weapons array is almost equal to our own, but they seem to be able to..."

"Have they moved?"

"No sir. It just came out of no-where and has stayed right in our path since then"

"Sir, I believe this may be a Bendis ship"

"Oh my..." Ithiell suddenly faltered, seeming to have trouble breathing. He gripped the sides of the chair so tightly we heard his claws dig into the metal.

"What? What is it? What's a...?" Keera cut Rachel off as Amanda finally joined us. She took in the scene but decided to remain quiet.

"This is Bendis space we're travelling in, and I'm guessing since that ship in front of us..."

"It's her. Omigod, it's her!" Ithiell breathed, staring up at the ship, his face unreadable.

"Sir, have you seen this ship..."

"No... no, I haven't. But I... I know exactly who's on that ship now... hail them!"

"But sir, they could be extremely..."

"I said HAIL THEM!" Ithiell roared, practically leaping up from his seat, flaring his wings, and looking angrier than I'd ever seen him.

(Hailing sir) another Andalite said. Seconds later, an image of a face appeared that changed everything at once. That face... that face was Chanaiben.

"You" Ithiell looked panicked again, swallowing hard.

"Yes, it's me dear brother" The Chanaiben female replied, sounding almost arrogant.

"_Inaad_!" He looked shocked, but then his face changed "No, you're not the real Inaad... I can sense... you're a Yeerk!"

"What do you mean?" Jake demanded. It was only then that Ithiell dared to look down at us. He was barely containing himself, I saw that.

"When twins are born in my culture... they are bonded by... their minds share a special bond after that moment... but although we can shut each other out sometimes... it is always preferred by each that they stay linked. But when I lost the link with her..." He looked up on the screen "I thought you were dead!"

"Not quite. But I came pretty close. And guess what kind of ship plucked me from a destroyed Chanaiben ship, half dead?"

"No... Inaad... no..."

"Oh... you think your sister chose this? Oh no no! She resisted with all she had, the little snot... but I got her in the end... and now, she makes a brilliant host"

"Nine years as a... as a slave? Nine years... _Nimal cubrinn_!" Ithiell cried out in his own tongue to her.

"Sorry? No, she doesn't blame you... she... well, you can tell from our little link, can't you?"

"I... I... no, but she hates you... and blames Yeerks!"

"Good dear brother" The Yeerk slipped back into character "You still remember your old ways... I always knew you'd be something. But me? What was I supposed to do? With our link... our very rare, and very powerful... link, it was almost like I was a side show"

"You... let go of her!!" Ithiell screamed, flaring his wings and looking angry and hurt all at once.

"Now why would I do that? She's a very valuable specimen... got me right up to Visser Six in the first year... then into the council of thirteen. And I've been there ever since. In fact..."

"Shut up Yeerk! I don't want to hear your lies!"

"Lies? _Lies? _You think I'm lying to you?" She seemed to consider this for a moment, before continuing "Now that just hurts. But... if you want I can tell you truth..."

"No... don't even!"

"A truth plucked right out of your little head. A simple thought that came to me and told me..."

"Shut up! Inaad!"

"...you were out here. Fascinating, in fact. The way you love this Amanda girl..."

"Leave her out of this... _simpa nirrim wivven! Timaa!_"

"And how you love seeing her true beauty in the false light. How it awakens..."

"That's enough! Don't you ever mention her again! You lousy, _pathetic_ little worm!" Ithiell yelled in pure rage. His chest was heaving, his nostrils were flaring with each breath, and... and on his wings, I saw tiny little red and green veins start to emerge. I guessed it was the male Chanaibens way to show anger.

"Oh, but you don't like my lies, do you? Now, let's..." but then Inaad's face contorted, and for those few precious seconds I think we were actually looking at the real Inaad.

"I am sorry _Unimm. Kinaar ivett zunaarr..._"

"_Ke parr, ke parr! Unami dessan quannass_!" he called back, and after he said that, the mask came back down, and it was the Yeerk in control once again. It just made me mad. I guess the others felt the same.

"See? Even now she tries to defy me. But I always get her in the end"

Ithiell was stock still. Thinking. Considering his options. His wings were still flared, but the colour was now draining from his wings. Finally, he sighed and looked up at the face on the screen... almost sadly. His wings folded back behind their skin flaps and disappeared from sight.

"_Unami, se nerr doannte si mu vlett. Somai Unami. Somai cubrinn_" Ithiell said at the face, and I saw his 'leader' face returning. He was turning hard and cold. Indifferent.

For a fleeting second, the face of the Inaad looked terrified, and in that second Inaad herself came through again.

"_Unimm, me se nerr. Ne somai_" the face was understanding and sad... and then the Yeerk took control again.

"Why you insignificant..."

"Cut her off"

A Chanaiben followed his orders. Seconds later, we were back to the screen of the ship. Ithiell sat down again, flicking his tail a little as he did.

"Shields up, maximum strength. And power up all weapon banks"

His orders were carried out as four of us looked at him in shock. Cassie, Amanda, Tobias and Rachel. The rest of us... the rest of us understood his decision.

"You're going to kill your own sister!" Amanda asked, unbelieving.

"I have no choice"

"There's always a choice! Jake..." Cassie looked to Jake for support, but he understood. And shook his head at her.

"That isn't his sister anymore. It's the enemy"

"The enemy my... you saw it! Inaad... she's still in there!" Tobias yelled.

"And how do you suppose we get to her? She's... nine years Tobias, and she's..." I trailed off, looking sadly up at Ithiell. Poor Ithiell had already lost so much...

"You can't just go and kill her! Nine years doesn't mean you can go kill her!" Rachel grated.

"It's like the free Hork-Bajir. They said they'd rather be free or dead. Inaad's the same" Marco said softly, although I knew he hated it too.

"Shields up, weapons at full charge sir"

"Good"

"Sir, what about the Aerionna?"

"Get them behind us and tell them to do the same. We may need them, but I'm not willing to take risks unless we have to..."

"Sir, they're powering up too!"

"Don't let them! FIRE!!"

Seconds later, twin beams of light shot out and at the ugly ship. It hit, and then bounced off into their still raising shields and dissipated.

"Sir, they're returning fire"

"HOLD ON TO SOMETHING!!" The eight of us ran and hugged the walls. Still, the impact sent us all reeling.

KABOOOOOM!!!!

"Shields down to sixty percent!"

"We can fire again!"

"DO IT!!"

Another set of bright blue beams arched towards the other ship. It hit their shields, but didn't seem to shock them as badly.

"Minimum damage to their shields"

"Fire when ready!"

"Sir, they're firing!"

"Evasive manoeuvres! Both ships!"

KABBOOOOMM!!

The impact hit the very edge of our ship, sending it spinning.

"Get our head the right way round!"

"Moving sir!"

"Another thirty percent has been lost from our shields. I fear the next will... and then, after that...!"

"I know! Fire again! And bring the Aerionna into the fight, but tell them to watch they don't get hit, I don't think they could stand a single hit!"

"Sir, shall I fire..."

"FIRE YOU IDIOT!!!"

Another two beams, and another 'minimum damage' hit. The Aerionna fired, but it looked more like someone trying to swat an elephant with a fly swatter.

"Another! We can't let them...!"

KABOOOM!!! KABLAAAMM!!

"Shields down! One more hit and we're..."

TSEEEWWW!!!

A green beam of light hit the other ship! And this one visibly rocked it from the impact. Then the Aerionna and our ship fired, and it seemed to make a difference this time. It ran, and two... no, three! Ships followed it, shooting madly until it disappeared into Z-space. We didn't follow. We couldn't. The two ships were too damaged.

(Sir, it's an Andalite cruiser!) Someone said, almost sounding giddy. I looked at the viewscreen and saw it to .Funny shape... the weapon arched above like an Andalite tail...

"Sir, we are being hailed!"

"On screen" Ithiell said.

And when the image changed, I think we all must have let out a big sigh.

"War Prince Aximili, it is glad to see you are alive"

"Ax!" Tobias cried joyfully, and the Andalite on the screen smiled.

(Why Tobias, it is good to see you too. But... why are you all... and what is the Aerionna doing still in flight? It crashed when...?)

"Is Rtaia there?" Ithiell asked.

"I am here Ithiell. And... I am afraid to say that... that you're true sister..."

"I know Rtaia. I know"

"It seems we have a lot to talk about then" Jake said, stepping up beside Ithiell and putting a hand on his shoulder.

"You got that right" Rachel muttered.

**Didn't see that one coming, did you? Huh? Am I good or what?**


	12. What the creature left

**Okay, I hate to do this, but Ax is getting a demotion. He's now just a Prince. Sorry, I didn't think much of that, but now...**

**Ax; Hey!**

**Me; Sorry, but you gotta earn it!!**

**Ax: (grumbles but grudgingly accepts) Will I earn it here?**

**Me; Yeah... but only if you're good! (smiles)**

**Ax; I am good!**

**Me; (snickers and walks away, with Ax still insisting he _is_ good)**

**And I'm not sure how this chappie will turn out... but... I'll give it a rating J.I.C (just in case). I hope this turns out good enough though (fingers crossed)**

Well, we'd met up with Ax, Rtaia and Lowri (our guess at what happened... well, that's _exactly_ what happened) who told us they'd been tailing Inaad's ugly looking ship though Z-space, as well as into Bendis territory. Then I guess the mase-ship decided to turn around and fight... and they did, only with the Aerionna being shot down, and Ax's ship getting knocked around quite a bit. They pulled off... and the mase-looking ship went off. They picked up the Aerionna's crew (at least, those who had survived the attack) and started immediate repairs. Then... it was after the ship again. Only this time... they were careful not to be 'seen'. The Andalites on Ax's ship (named the _TailBlade_) didn't like the idea of following the ship after being pummelled, but Rtaia insisted on following it. She knew about Ithiell's sister, and was determined to find a way to get her back. Then... well... we showed up and Ithiell's ship distracted them long enough for the _TailBlade_ to get a good hit. Apparently the only weakness in the shield was that if they put all their shields energy forward, that would leave their back exposed. I guess the Yeerk inside Inaad's head really was afraid of what Ithiell would do. Ithiell himself... well, I guess he became distant from everyone.

Amanda begged me to go with her and check on him one day (since after Ax and Rtaia explained what had happened, he had asked Genge and Keera to take over, then disappeared into his quarters) and I agreed. She was so distressed since she thought he somehow blamed her for this. But I knew he didn't... I knew he just wanted to be alone for a while... the reality must have hit him hard...

We reached his quarters, and just as we were about to knock, the door slid open and Lowri stepped out, giving us a funny look. We were probably giving him a funny look too. But just past him... I saw...

Ithiell was curled up on the bed, upright... shaking like a leaf... and Rtaia was there, her arms around him. He was crying, and as the door slid shut behind Lowri, we heard him let loose an anguished scream. Lowri turned back, perhaps to listen, but then focused his gaze on us and shook his head sadly. We followed him away from Ithiell's door, far enough and waited until Lowri spoke.

"He is... highly distressed. He hates himself... not any of us..."

"But... can I see him?" Amanda asked, a little desperate. Lowri shook his head, and she looked like she was about to break down and cry.

"It is not that he doesn't want to see you... it is just...well, he needs to be with his own kind for now... unless you can make sense out of our language" He smiled sadly, putting a hand on her shoulder in a supporting way "He... Rtaia is the closest thing he has to what he needs right now. Her calming nature will... hopefully... act in a positive way..."

"Is Rtaia... like... a psychiatrist or something?" I asked as I watched Amanda fight back her tears. I put my arm around her, supporting, and looked up at Lowri.

"She is... in spite of no blood ties between the two... they still share a close bond. Not linked, the special way twins are... but a bond nonetheless. She is also... well, she was named Rtaia because she was... born a healer of sorts... unless she is in a war" Lowri added.

"So her name means...?"

"Well, I can only roughly translate... but it means... Soul Healer"

"Ah. Nice name. And... do you know what Ithiell's name means?"

"Yes. Silent Strength. Inaad's name means the same... only..."

"Only like a girl version. Huh" I mused "Your name?"

Yeah I know. Pointless conversation... but it was keeping away the doubts in my head... and perhaps Amanda's as well. At least, I hoped.

"It means... roughly..."

Lowri stopped talking when Amanda let out a frustrated scream and walked away from us. I guess I hadn't been doing as well as I thought. I looked at her as she walked away, and then turned to look back up at Lowri sadly.

"Sorry, but she's..."

"I understand. You asked what my name meant... well, I do not believe I live up to it. It is 'True Leader' but I do not believe this is the case. After all, my ship was..."

"Yeah, I know. Don't worry about it" I started to walk away from him, then felt a little dizzy and leaned on the wall for a second.

"Are you...?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just... do what you can with Ithiell. Help him... I'm going to go lay down for a while"

He nodded, taking my hand as a symbol of understanding and acceptance, then being a 'gentleman', helped me back to my quarters. He assured me that Ithiell would be fine, and not to 'worry myself sick' about it. He left, and I realised he was wrong. His mother had named him well. Ithiell had once told me he always wanted to be like Lowri (he was fourteen- Amanda, Robert and I were twelve) when he was younger. He looked up to Lowri... more than I think even he knew. Lowri was strong, but he still cared enough... he had another type of family back on the Chanaiben home world. A wife... three children... and along with Ithiell, Rtaia and his crew... I believed he could get anyone to follow him. Anywhere.

I lay down on my bed and fell asleep on and off. The last time I woke, I was shivering a little. I got up and realised it was actually the middle of the night (well, that's what my watch told me anyway) so I got up and slipped my shoes on, heading out my door to find someone to talk to... maybe see if Amanda was alright...

"Uh... hey! Robert!" Came a voice, and down the end of the hall... I saw Marco go running past. I froze, afraid of what might happen between the two... Robert could probably knock the stuffing out of Marco if he was mad enough...

"What?" was Robert's reply. I slunk closer to the end of the hallway to hear them better. I reached the end, deciding not to peek out in case one of them saw me.

"I... I just wanted to ask... what was that about in the training room? What were you on about?"

"I...uh... it's nothing, really. We... had a little argument when we were on bridge duty... she said I was right... probably for the first time in history..."

"What was it about?" Marco asked casually. But I knew him. He was working for answers, and since I wasn't much help...

"What we argued about? Well, nothing that should concern you now. Don't worry"

"Well if it concerns Jade, I think I have a right to, especially if it's about..."

"Well, if it'll out your mind at ease..." Robert said a little nastily.

"Yeah, it will" Marco ignored his tone.

Robert finally sighed, then told him what had happened, running over it as basic as he could get.

"You care a lot about her, don't you?" Marco's question stunned me. I wiped my sweaty forehead with the heel of my hand, straining my ears for Robert's response.

"Well, if you must know... if I can trust you..."

"Sure. What is it? I won't tell a soul"

Robert sighed, and I heard him pacing a bit, before he answered.

"You're right, I do care about Jade. A lot. So much in fact... but she's your girl now, I made the mistake of letting her go..."

"She's not exactly property... but... go on"

"This never leaves this hallway. Hear me?"

"Never"

"Well, there was a time... when I could've told her... it was just after the final war. We were both fourteen, and I had just seen her freeze in the middle of the war... she recovered herself, but only for long enough to finish the fighting. When it was over... she collapsed onto the ground and screamed and cried and beat her fists into the ground... until her voice was hoarse and her palms were swollen... and covered with blood... she felt so guilty... I wanted to go to her, maybe hold her and tell her it was all right... but I couldn't. Instead, I grabbed her collar, lifted her up to my face, and said four simple but crushing words... I nearly destroyed her hope that day..."

"What were those words?"

_Don't tell him_, I begged silently, remembering that day as if had only been yesterday, _oh god please, don't tell him._ I curled up into a ball on the floor, back against the wall, and clenched my teeth, knowing he'd tell Marco. Knowing... knowing what? That...

"They were words that carried so many meanings for her. I said 'what have you done? Jade, what have you done?' I felt like I was blaming her... and she..."

"Because she froze and got those two Chanaibens killed?"

"Yeah... but... she's yours now... and if you hurt her..."

"Yeah, I know what you can do. But... thanks for telling me, ok?"

"You tell anyone else and I'll grind your face into the ground. That's a promise"

"Yep. No problemo. My lips are sealed buddy..."

I heard it all from far away now. My head was now pounding and I was physically feeling sick. Something was wrong with me. Oh god, something was definitely, _definitely_ wrong with me.

I wrapped an arm around my churning stomach, and another against my throbbing temple, fighting to breathe without feeling like I was going to puke. Shaking... horrible shaking...

Was I afraid? Overwhelmed? Whoa....?

And then the pain! Oh god, it felt like it was coming from everywhere! I screamed, threw up, then started screaming again, holding myself in a foetal position on the floor...

"Oh god make it stop!" I screamed. Hands were touching my shoulders... and someone was trying to talk to me... but I couldn't respond... conversation drifting in and out of my ears...

"What.......... her?"

"I....... t know!"

"I.................guys! It.......... Jake ........going ..........sick .......? .......taking him............black......... out!"

"I...... need to....... Jade! ..................help! Something......."

They tried to get me to my feet... but by now everything was spinning... where was up... I felt myself hit the floor....

And then I was gone. Whatever had happened to Jake... well, I guess it happened to me now, too.

_**----------------------------------------------x-------------------------**_

I woke up lying flat on my back. There was what felt like a sheet covering me... but something felt weird... wrong...

There was metal... and I think a pillow under my head. But... I felt my stomach... it hurt...

And then a fresh terror washed through me. The creature... it had me again!

I bolted up and jumped off the table, with the sheet sliding off me... only to find a female Chanaiben sitting in a chair in front of me, doing something with what looked like thread and her funny clawed hands. And she was giving me a weird look.... looking me over sceptically and then at my face. I looked down... and I suddenly saw why. I was... well, lets just say I was pretty... exposed.

By instinct... pure me instinct... I grabbed the weird sheet thing and wrapped it around me like a towel. It happens when you have three siblings... especially a brother with weird-as friends...

"Oh, so _now_ you're being modest" I heard someone laugh, and I turned to see Marco in what looked like a dining chair, leaning back and laughing his head off.

"What's so funny?" I asked, feeling myself start to blush.

"I... well you..." He laughed a little harder. In fact, he was laughing so hard... the only thing that stopped him from laughing was him loosing his balance on the chair.

"Hey...whoa!"

CLUNK!!

"OWWWWWW!!"

"Oh serves you right" I said a little angrily to him, then turned back to the Chanaiben female, who's entire attention was focused on what she was doing... knitting? I couldn't be sure. I saw Marco pick himself up as I turned and saw someone else on another table beside me. Jake? He was lying on his back too... with a green sheet across him as well. What the...?

"Uhh... can someone tell me what's going on?" I asked looking from the female Chanaiben which I suddenly remembered was named Simai, then to Marco, who was rubbing the back of his head painfully. It was Simai who answered first.

"You were brought here over a week ago. Doctors say you were both incapacitated and went into, what humans call... a coma. Neither of you were responding to any sort of stimuli..." she kind of turned to Marco, lost for words. After all, she didn't really know humans as well as Ithiell and Rtaia seemed to. It was probably hard for her to sum it all up in words I'd understand.

"You and Jake both passed out at around the same time. Both of you had the same reactions and then... boom! Out like a busted light. We brought you here, where you've been ever since..." He was smiling at me now. I knew that smile. And at that moment I really wish he wouldn't. I'd had enough creepiness the past couple of weeks.

"That still doesn't explain why... uh... it doesn't explain why I'm wearing a sheet instead of my regular clothes" I was blushing now, glad that Marco had stayed where he was. I hugged the sheet a little tighter to me with one hand.

"Well, after we slapped you both silly and dumped water on you... the doctors decided to give you guys a thorough check over. Down to the molecular level..."

"But Amanda checked out as fine when that happened... and all she had to do was lay down when they..."

"Yeah, well... that's when they found something in both of you that really shouldn't have been there" He turned serious now.

"What was it?" I asked.

"It was... that thing that prodded you with that stick thing..."

"Wait a second... that doesn't make sense!"

"Well... think of it this way... not only did it take your DNA out, it put something else _in_ as well"

"Like... like what?" I shivered. I had a feeling that whatever he was going to say, I wasn't going to like it.

"Like a virus or something. Or a microscopic version of the tar-creature"

"What?! How... we checked out fine when we...?!"

"Yeah, but neither of you were checked out like Amanda was"

"What... what about her and Ovatt and Kayleese? What about them?"

"All checked out fine. Whatever it stuck in there, not even Jake's morphing could get it out"

"So... what did they do? Is... is gone?" I asked touching my stomach and feeling fresh stitches. I relaxed.

About a hair.

"The doctors got it out. But... it was growing in your stomach... so rapidly that... it caused you and Jake to have violent reactions to it... but its out now... don't worry" He came to me and put his arm gingerly around my shoulders.

Simai got up, turning my attention to her "I will go get your clothes now, if you wish"

"Oh yes, I wish. Thankyou" I smiled gratefully at her, and she left the room.

"So... what did they do with it? Burn it?" I turned back to him, needing to know... needing to know it was all right now... and he sighed and....

Then a groan startled us and we turned back to see Jake was waking up. He looked up, probably having the same idea I had.

"Uh, buddy... I wouldn't sit up too fast if I were you" Marco warned.

"What?" Jake sat up, ignoring his friend, and I turned away as the sheet fell. I suddenly felt like leaving the room... very fast. But Marco's arm stayed where it was. He was still looking at Jake.

"Oh... hey! Where are my... ouch! Did that..."

"I'll explain" Marco went over it again with Jake as I just kind of stared at a wall, wishing Simai would get back.

"Jade... oh man... what are you doing here?"

"Well, you guys weren't supposed to wake up for a few hours... but I guess you..."

"Whatever... what are we going to do now?"

"This is embarrassing" I muttered. My face was hot, and I was sweating from the fact I was just so embarrassed about it all.

"Yeah, same" Jake said "But... well, at least..."

At that moment... that glorious moment... Simai came back, handed me my clothes and guided me into a side room where I got dressed hurriedly. I waited for an ok when I was done and then stepped out. Jake was dressed too. I was glad. But still pretty red-faced. Jake was too.

"So, what now?" I asked looking at Marco. He was silent.

"Marco? What is it?" Jake asked, sounding like his old self.

He looked down, frowning, then looked at each of us in turn.

"I think there's something the two of you need to see"

**Errrr... sorry. I thought it would be better... but yeah, I told you the tar-creature hadn't left. I think I might have a name for it now... thanks to LittleMidgett. Girl you _so _rock! Thanks a bundle. Now I just have to find a way to bring it into this story... hmmm.... (thinking face...)**

**Ax; Am I a War-Prince yet??**

**Me; No, you'll just have to wait a little longer...**

**Ax; But I don't want to wait!!**

**Me; Tough! Now shush and let me think!**

**(Sorry, I just thought you guys would get a bit of a laugh from that...) **


	13. All so wrong

**I should just call myself Psycho Chick... I act that way... oh well...**

**Ax; Am I a War-Prince yet?**

**Robert; Ax, shut up or I'll pound you one!**

**Rachel; Yeah, what he says!**

**Me; Ax, soon, ok? In a few...**

**Ax; All right... (sniffles, then goes off as a human to find LittleMidgett) I'll just have to go eat a cinnamon bun...**

**LittleMidgett; Ahhh! Help! He's nuts! (then laughs hysterically as he starts to try and eat her)**

**Me; (rolling eyes and shaking head) where did I go wrong...**

**Ok, hope that gave you a bit of a laugh... well, it's time to get serious here... back to my twisted story line... and my wickedly twisted mind.**

**LittleMidgett; I love Green Day! My fave is 'American Idiot' (it just came out here a little while ago) I like other bands too... I wish I could hear your brothers band... he sounds funny!**

**Okay... here goes people...**

Fifteen minutes later, we were all assembled on the bridge. The Animorphs, Ax, and of course us. Ithiell was there too, probably berating himself for being so stupid. I didn't think he was. I guess neither did Rtaia. Lowri had... during the time we were out... taken his crew to the Aerionna and fixed it in only the way he knew how, then left to get help... perhaps from the Runchak. I didn't know. Fifteen minutes wasn't enough time to get all the info.

Amanda and Cassie were overjoyed that we were both all right... and Robert just kind of gave me a curt nod. But the rest were serious. They knew something we didn't. And Jake and I... passed our 'how embarrassing' phase, wanted to know what.

"We'll show you" Ithiell said and lead us down the corridor...

(It is important that you understand we are merely...)

"Aximili, be quiet" Rtaia said gently. Surprisingly, Ax fell silent. Not even a surprised look. Weird.

We reached the lab about ten minutes later (it was a very big ship) and Ithiell just kind of stood in front of it, looking at both of us. Everyone else was behind us.

"What you will see may shock you, but it was either that or let them stay in you until they..."

"Until they basically ate you from the inside out" Robert supplied.

"Thanks Robert. You really know how to make a girl feel better" I muttered, watching as Ithiell shrugged at me, smiling sadly, then turned back to the door and pressed some buttons, then the door slid open and Ithiell stepped inside. Jake and I shared a look, before we followed him. The rest were right behind us.

He led us to three large glass cylinders. Two were occupied, and what they carried just made the both of us gasp.

It was like a mini-tar creature in both cylinders. About a foot and a half tall, two feet wide... only, they were frozen inside. The glass was only slightly frosty.

"It was the only way we could stop them from growing. After they were out of you... they doubled their size... so we froze them in water"

"But... why didn't you kill them? Why didn't you..." Amanda put a hand on my arm, and I fell silent.

"Well, we wanted to find out more about these things... if they're truly dangerous... we've run several scans on them... and well...."

"I believe what my brother means to say" Rtaia began "Is that their cell structure is not exactly what humans call 'DNA'. Rather it is more like the cellular structure in your earth plants. It can grow, and become a hybrid if necessary"

"But I think we know why that thing did this" Ithiell took over "Since I believe its civilization is fading... it injected you with the seeds, that feed off fluid and tissue..."

"They're cannibals" Robert put in "They think these things feed off each other... and when they ran out of food..."

"They turned to science. They tried to find a way to save their species. At least, the one you met did. That's why it... decided to take you. And when it found good enough specimens..."

"Not good enough specimens" I muttered.

"It injected you with these things. It thought that even if you got away... it had done its job..."

"But... what about our DNA?"

"Well, we don't know why that happened, but... I'm guessing... it wanted to see if your DNA could save them. Maybe create a hybrid of us and them" Ithiell said, sounding like he was back to his old self. I liked it like that. I guessed Rtaia had lived up to her name after all.

"But... what are we going to do with them now? We can't exactly let them go. If we do.... it's goodbye ship... and goodbye us" I said.

"We can't kill them" Was Cassie's response.

"Why not?" Rachel shot back "They could've killed Jake and Jade!"

"But... they're out..."

"Cassie, they're dangerous. Either way... we let them go... and they either kill us all, or... or some other innocent species" Robert put in.

"For once Cassie, I agree with them" Amanda said.

"What?! But you can't..."

"Okay, okay. Calm down people. We'll figure out what to do with them... a little later. Right now... I want to know if the Canask are willing to trade with us"

"The who?" Jake asked. Ithiell shook his head.

"We'll explain on the way" he said, and we left behind those two things. Little did we know that was just the first of our mistakes.

_**-------------------------------------x-----------------------------------------------**_

The Canask were a race located in this far end of space. Peaceful... curious... just like the Runchak in some ways, only... not to such an extent. Ax, Rtaia and Lowri met them a few months back. Lowri actually went to go ask their permission if we could stay there for a little while. They accepted, happily... they would help repair our ship... give us gracious amounts of food and water... even house us for a few days. All we needed to do was tell them stories. True and made up, they didn't care.

For the first time in a long while... we set food on solid ground. It was on purple grass... and I hoped it wasn't toxic or anything as I took off my shoes just to feel it between my feet. Some of the others did the same... Tobias... Marco and Amanda... even Robert. Jake and Cassie were kind of distant. Rachel just wanted a mall. In some ways I did too.

"Wow, this feels... good" Tobias said, looking at me. I smiled at him.

"Yeah. Cool huh? I think I almost forgot what it felt like"

"Well, you just take it easy, all right? Those stitches probably can't take a lot of jolting" Amanda warned as we stood there, watching as Ax, Lowri, Rtaia and Ithiell talked to them in a weird language. Lowri and Ax were kind of translating for Ithiell, I guess.

"Yes _mother_" I laughed, tossing one of my shoes at her. It missed on purpose... but she dodged and laughed at me anyway.

"We can't kill them" we heard Cassie say to Jake from a little further off.

"Look, can we not? Just for now" Jake replied.

I saw Marco turn, and was about to give Cassie a what-for, but I opened my mouth to stop him... only to find Robert had beaten me to it.

"Shut up runt. She's allowed to have her opinion too" He said to Marco, and Marco close his mouth, then turned back to look at us. I gave him a warning look. He backed off.

"Guys?" Ithiell came back to us, and he was smiling.

"They say it's fine... in fact, we're to be given a special dinner in our honour. How cool is that?"

"Very cool" Rachel said, smiling.

So, that night (because it actually became night here) we went out and gawked at the stars for a little while, then went to what looked like a bonfire kind of party. Canask... looking strangely like a mix between the stereotypical alien and a totem pole... were happy. Most of our crews came (Ax's crew was more reluctant) and so did Kayleese and Ovatt. I was glad to see they were all right. They seemed a little happier as the Canask asked them very simple questions, and Ax made sure they didn't ask too many questions. He was taking care of his people. I liked that.

We ate some strange but delicious food, drank something that had a simular effect as whine... and it was all just happy and wonderful. Even Cassie seemed to be jolted out of her sour mood. We all danced as well, and Marco even suggested 'dirty dancing'. I pushed him away, and right into the 'buffet table'(a big long piece of wood with all the food and stuff on it) where he got soaked by the 'whine glass'. He decided to go get changed, and I decided to go with him, feeling a little guilty.

But... then something felt wrong as we neared the _Inaad_. Someone was lying facedown at the bottom of the stairs. We ran and picked her up. It was Kumatt, a science officer that had been in the lab when we were looking at the tar-creatures. She was still alive... but barely.

"What happened?" I asked, kneeling down as Marco held her in a sitting position.

"Tried to... had to get to warn... got out..." she passed out then, and Marco and I looked at one another.

"This doesn't feel good" I said, and he nodded in agreement. Marco stripped to his morphing outfit and became a gorilla, bounding up the stairs as I followed. I wasn't allowed to shape-shift because of the stiches.

We went in... and it all looked pretty normal. We walked to the empty bridge, and nothing seemed wrong. But it was Ithiell had left an Andalite male called Arbron up here. He wasn't here.

(The lab) Marco said, bounding off. I ran after him. When we got there... it wasn't looking good. Two Chanaibens were dead... their blood spilled out into the corridor. And then...

"Oh my god" I gasped as I looked up at the two cylinders. The two broken, empty cylinders.

(They escaped) Marco said.

And we were about to learn just how dangerous they really were.


	14. i have an idea

**I made a mistake in the last chappie! I put whine (like complaining) instead of wine (like the 'earth' drink) Oops! Oh well, now you know (I have no idea how you're supposed to eat a complaint, and you know what? I don't _wanna_ know) **

**Well, now we find out how dangerous my gross creatures can be (muahahahaha)**

**Chappie inspired by 2 songs; Cryponite by 3 doors down, and Feel the Beat by Darude **

In the blink of an eye, everything changed. Just...

(We've got to get the others) Marco's voice cut though my panic. I turned away from the horrifying scene to look at him.

"But... we don't know if they're really... they could still be... and what about Kumatt? We can't just leave her there to die! We've got to get her to..." I fast-walked out of the room, nearly slipping on the blood in the hallway, caught myself, and kept going towards the outer hatch.

(Jade wait!) He loped out after me. I didn't look back at him.

"I'm going to get Kumatt to the sickbay. At least if she's there, I can do something for her... _anything_ is better than..."

(Jade, I know you're scared, but...)

"Of _course_ I'm scared" I snapped, trying to control my hands from shaking as I walked.

(Don't give in to it, okay? You can't...)

"I can't help it Marco. It... I couldn't fight it... couldn't even save myself... and then it stuck that... that _thing_ in me... and it's still _alive_" At that second I felt an overwhelming anger at Cassie. She wanted to keep these things alive... and now...

(Look, I... I'll help you get Kumatt inside, ok? Then we'll go get the...)

"You can go. I'm going to stay with Kumatt. Maybe find out if any more of the crew is still here"

(But you can't even...)

"I know!" I yelled, turning to him "I know I can't shape-shift, but if it truly comes down to it... I'll do it" I turned back, clenching my fists and praying he didn't notice the way my hands shook.

(Your...) he seemed to consider this as we reached the stairs, and I practically galloped down them, with Marco not far behind. Now, he was silent.

I checked she was still alive, then Marco picked her up carefully and we took her back to the brightly lit sickbay. It made me feel better. Whatever that creature was, it seemed to be able to use the shadows to its advantage.

He put her on one of the operating tables Jake and I had been on, and I put my jacket under her head. With that, he demorphed and stood next to me.

"Are you sure you'll be all right?"

"I'll be fine" my voice was a whisper. I grabbed a green sheet and put it over her, hoping it would help until we actually had a doctor or someone who knew what they were doing. But it also meant that Marco would be going out there alone, into possible danger...

"You just take care of yourself" I said, then took a deep breath and looked up at him. He smiled and nodded.

"Sure. But..."

"You'd better be bloody fast though"

"I'll do what I can" he touched my cheek gently, then turned and headed out the door. I followed him to the hatch, where he morphed wolf outside and took off into the night. Now I was alone. I went up to the bridge first, checking around until I found the panel with Jara guns in it. I took two, shoved one into the stretchy waistband of my long skirt (I'd borrowed it from Amanda) then scanned the room with the other before I left. No sign Arbron was here... or had been here in fact. So maybe he was all right...

I walked down the corridor, and into my room, where I changed into jeans and shoved my hair back with shaky hands, wanting to be ready for anything. Then I began to check each room individually, until I gave up and started to head back to the sickbay. What was taking the others so long... was Marco all right? Did he make it? I wish I knew. I felt like a coward for not going with him...

A shadow going into the sickbay caught my attention. Then the door slid shut...

_Oh no... _I thought, fighting back the panic_ Kumatt..._

I ran, in spite of everything, holding the Jara gun out in front of me and prepared to shoot anything that moved. If that tar creature was there... I'd kill it. I'd watch it writhe and burn and...

Slowly, I pressed one hand against the panel, and the door slid open. I kept out of sight, waiting to see if something would come out. Nothing. I peeked around the edge of the door...

"Oh!" I yelped as I saw someone standing over Kumatt. It was...

"Simai!" I cried, and she looked up at me a little strangely.

"Simai, what are you doing here?! Didn't you..."

"Yes, I have seen the destruction those two creatures have caused. I was in my quarters and I heard noises, but I simply believed it was just the others talking. Then I smelled Chanaiben blood, and...

"You... smelled it from all the way..."

"Yes, and now... I must assist my friend" She had taken off the sheet, and was checking Kumatt over gently with her clawed hands. Bruises only now were beginning to show on her aqua skin, and her breathing came out in long steady movements.

I slipped the rest of the way into the room, turning and shutting the door.

"How do you lock this?"

"Why?"

"Because those things could still be on the ship!"

"Oh" She gave me the numbers for it, and I punched them in. The computer announced that the door was locked, and I took a deep breath. We'd be safe, for now. I touched my stiches, checking them, and finding that one felt a little loose. But I ignored it, instead going and standing by Simai, my Jara gun levelled at the door. Anything could happen...

"She... she will be all right" Simai moved around the room, getting this and that, acting like a pro. She was a nurse, but... wow, she moved like she was a fully trained doctor. She knew exactly which thing to use for what. Eventually, Kumatt had bandages wrapped around here and there (Simai needed my help lifting Kumatt's torso once) and something attached to her mouth. Bits here and there as well.

"There. It is..."

BAMMM!!!

Something rocked the door from the outside. Then... a voice called out to me.

_**---------------------------------------x-------------------------------------------**_

**A/N: I'm gonna try something I haven't done before. I'm gonna try writing a bit from Jakes point of view. If I get it wrong please tell me. I've only tried not to do this because I don't want to wreck it. Oh well, here goes...**

**Jake**

I spun Cassie around again, smiling as she laughed happily. It was good to have her here, and for once, not to worry about anything... at least for a little while.

I'd put our two unwanted guests out of my mind and just enjoyed the night. The Canask were wonderful hosts, and their music was lively and joyful. Just what we all needed right now. Especially Ithiell. After all, I knew what it was like to loose a sibling to the Yeerks...

I watched as him and Lowri chatted away, then as Amanda grabbed his arm and pulled him out onto the wide space we were using for the dance floor to dance. He seemed a little uncomfortable, then got into it.

I'd also watch Marco lean in and whisper something to Jade, and she blushed and pushed him playfully away... right into the drink. They'd gone off together... and if I knew Marco, they probably wouldn't be back for a while.

Ax and Rtaia were talking to Ovatt and Kayleese, and Robert was standing off by himself. As usual. That guy can really grind my nerves when he wants to...

"Hey cous, how's it going?" Rachel asked as she and Tobias sidled up next to us, their arms around each other as they danced.

"Good" I replied, and we switched partners. Now I was dancing with Rachel, and Tobias was spinning Cassie away.

"Want to do-si-do?" She laughed, and I couldn't help but laugh with her.

"You'd better not. Your stiches man" Tobias said as we switched again, and I held Cassie close.

"Yeah yeah, I know" I said, some of the fun taken out of me now. Cassie stepped away a little, and I spun her around again. Amanda and Ithiell passed us, and I saw a smiled on Ithiell's face. It was good to see.

The song ended, and we pulled apart and went to the side as another dance started up, and the Canask and a few Chanaibens continued to dance away. Amanda and Ithiell were with them. We took a break, and Tobias and I brought the girls some drinks.

"We're not even old enough for this, you know that" Cassie pointed out, drinking it anyway.

"Well, I say we earned a few extra years in the war" Rachel said, raising her cup a little before taking a sip.

Then I spotted Marco making his way through the crowd to Ax and Rtaia... and he looked...

"What's he doing in his morphing outfit?" I wondered.

"Fashion statement? Ran out of clean clothes?" Tobias supplied, but I shook my head. I had a bad feeling about this.

"Where's Jade? Why isn't she with him?" Cassie asked, seeing the thing I overlooked. She's always been like that...

"I can't see her anywhere... maybe she just decided to go to bed" Rachel suggested, shrugging her shoulders. I hummed that I'd heard her, but keeping my eyes glued to Marco. He reached Ax and Rtaia, calling Lowri over, since he wasn't too far away. They seemed to be talking... and then Rtaia's ears folded against the sides of her head and I knew there was definitely something wrong.

"Come on" I said to the others, setting my drink on the table and snaking my way through the crowd. They followed me. Together, we made our way to them, just as I heard Ax start to shout my name.

"Yeah, we're here. What is it?" I asked looking down at my best friend. He looked serious, and a little scared. He shot a glance at Cassie, then looked up at me.

"You know those things we got out of you?"

"Yeah, what?" I asked, although I dreaded the answer.

"Well they've escaped"

"What?!" Rachel roared. I just stared at him. I couldn't believe it. How...

"Where's Jade?" Tobias asked.

"Back at the ship. She's taking care of one of the Science officers... I think the only one that survived the attack"

"What attack?" Ithiell and Amanda were with us now, with Robert not far behind them. Marco told them, and Ithiell's eyes went wide.

"We've got to get back there! The things might still be on the ship!"

"Yeah, we guessed. But... they could also be out here. Ax, Lowri? Do you think you could warn the Canask for us? Get them back to their homes before it's too late?" I asked. Ax nodded, and Lowri smiled sadly, then spoke a few words in Chanaiben to Ithiell and Rtaia before taking off.

We peeled off from the happy dancing group, and slightly away from the fire. We began to strip to our morphing...

"Jake, not you" Ithiell said.

"Huh?"

"Your stitches. If you morph, it could start something else growing in you, or cause a reaction that..."

"Say what? You mean I can't..."

"Not unless it's absolutely necessary"

"Well, all right" I stood to the side with Tobias as the others morphed and shape-shifted. Rachel went grizzly, Cassie horse, Marco gorilla, and Amanda and Robert polar bears. Ithiell and Rtaia stayed as themselves.

"Easier to access the systems that way" Ithiell explained as he revealed his big leathery wings, flapped them, flew up, then turned and grabbed Rtaia by the waist, lifting her with ease. Together, they flapped into the night, with Marco and Rachel following them. Amanda and Robert flanked the two.

(Ready guys?) Cassie asked as she walked up beside us. I jumped on, then helped pull Tobias on behind me.

"Now you know how I feel" he muttered as Cassie took off after our friends, running full speed. Soon, we reached the brightly lit ship. There were small puddles of blood on the ground near the hatch.

(That's where we found her) Marco explained as Ithiell flew into the ship, forgetting about the stairs of the hatch. Marco lumbered up after them. For Amanda, Robert and Rachel however, they had more trouble. Amanda and Robert shrunk to a cougar and a leopard, and Rachel had to demorph, but as they did... Cassie rocketed up the stairs, with us holding on for dear life. We ducked as Cassie reached the entrance.

(You'd better not start...) Rachel was cut off as she became more human than bear, and Amanda shot up the stairs after us, with Robert not far behind.

Finally, we were all in the main hallway.

"Which way?" I asked Marco.

"We're going to access the systems" Ithiell called back as he and Rtaia ran towards the bridge. I liked his thinking. I just wish I had thought of it.

(I left her in sickbay) Marco lumbered along, and we followed him. Soon, Rachel joined us, still a grizzly.

_She probably only shrunk enough to get up the stairs..._

We reached sickbay, finding the door was shut.

(Did you...?)

(No, I left it... but maybe...)

I think at that moment we all had the same thought. They were in there... and they...

(I can hear something... there's something moving in there!) Amanda stood close to the door, her ears cocked forward, probably straining to hear every sound made inside that room. I wished I had my tiger hearing.

(Let's knock it down) Rachel suggested. She sidled up next to Amanda, and threw her whole weight against it before I could stop her.

BAAAMMM!!

It definitely shook the door, but didn't bend or break it. Amanda leapt back, startled by Rachel's sudden movement, and growled.

(Don't do that?! You want to scare the daylights out of them in there?!) she cried.

(Jade? Hey, Jade!! You in there?) Robert called. Nothing. And then...

Ssssssssssstt...

The door slid open, and Jade stood in the doorway. Her hands were wrapped tightly around a Jara gun, and it was levelled at us. Behind her I saw someone lying on the table, and the Chanaiben nurse named Sim-something. I guessed the person on the table was the scientist.

"About time you guys showed up. Kumatt's gonna be ok, but... I... Simai here came just in time. She's fixed her up pretty good and..." She let her arms and the weapon drop. She still held the gun, but loosely.

"But what about the creatures?" I asked as I slid off Cassie's back, knowing it was a risky move, but still not caring.

"To tell you the truth, I've been too scared to go looking after I found Simai here. She gave me a mega scare too" She said sighing and rubbing her temple, then told us what had happened.

(But where are those creatures then? Why did they... are out there now, looking for more victims? And where's...)

"Ithiell to sickbay. Can you guys here me?" We heard through some sort of intercom system. We looked at Simai, who nodded and went over to work it.

"Yes sir. Simai here"

"Good. Jake?"

"I'm here" I went over to stand beside Simai.

"Even better. Listen, Rtaia and I have scanned the ship. Besides you, there's only one other life form on board, and that registers as a Chanaiben male"

"But I thought you couldn't..."

"I recalibrated my system. I'm faster than you think you know"

(He did it while you guys were out) Amanda explained. I nodded.

"Now... I'm going to see if we can pick them up outside somewhere"

"I thought you would have..."

"The first priority was the ship. If they were here, we were going to have to seal this ship... with us still inside it"

Now that definitely gave me the creeps. There was nothing more I didn't want to have to do...

"Scanning the _TailBlade_ and the _Aerionna_" Rtaia broke in. We waited for what seemed like minutes, but were only seconds, before she had an answer.

"Nothing. They are clear of the two life forms"

"Right. Now... the outside..."

Again, we waited for what seemed like forever, until...

"Got them! They've split up though. One's heading for the city, and the other is near a Canask kind of lake, but I have no idea... wait! The one that was heading toward the city! It's stopped! I think it might be.... aha! It's heading off to where the other one is!"

_Now why would it...? Hmm, maybe..._

But Jade had buzzed it all through her brain faster, and she looked up at all of us, hope and maybe something a little more dangerous in her eyes.

"Call me crazy, but I think I might have an idea"


	15. Meeting of the maniacs

**Errr... I'm not sure how this will turn out... hope you like it though... **

**And buy the way, Jade's telling the story again...**

"Are you _insane?!!_" Marco. Of course.

"Let's do it!" Rachel. Who else would go for crazy and dangerous?

"Jade, what _are_ you?" Robert. From him... that was normal.

"Oh my... oh my..." Amanda. The worrier. My best friend too.

But it was Jake's comment that cut through them all.

"Are you sure you're not just some freaky mix between these two?" He asked, pointing from his cousin to his best friend. I shrugged and let out a small laugh.

We were in a sort of 'conference room'. Ithiell and Rtaia had made sure to recall all the Chanaibens and Andalites back to their ships, putting them on high alert. From what we heard... a couple got picked off when they were coming back. A few from each ship. Not good.

Ovatt and Kaylesse were all right, and Genge and Keera took the bridge while we all talked. I'd outlined a plan, and Jake, Ithiell and Robert all spotted problems with it. Marco wasn't saying anything. He was just sitting in his chair, leaning back on the wall with his arms folded. Ax and Lowri had come back, and had told us that all the Canask were safe, besides a few... and they also had some very interesting things to tell us.

"Apparently this race has been on the Canask world before, but something... they don't know what it was... something seemed to scare them off" Lowri had said as he and Ax stood side by side.

"And do these things have a name?" Jake had asked, leaning back against a wall, his arms folded.

(Yes. But males and females of this race have different names from one another. The males are called Tahjett, and the females Tahjinn)

I'd glanced over at Marco, waiting for the witty joke. None came.

But they also told us that these creatures can not stand extremely bright light. They live mostly in shadows, and there are very few that can actually tolerate a certain amount of light. Like the scientist Tah-whatver. What I couldn't believe is that they had genders. The lab Tar-thing didn't seem like it knew what genders even _where..._

And then Lowri had explained why. They are technically different species, kind of like different kinds of dogs. They only come together to create their own. Any longer and the male will eat the female (hence their cannibalistic urges). As well as a strange sort of role-reversal thing. The males carry the seeds of the future in their tentacles or whatever. I didn't want to really know that though. I'd just really had enough of it all.

So there was a way to tell them apart. We saw a female... a Tahjinn... in the lab. The males only had four large tentacles, the females had many.

Discussions raced on into the early morning, and all of us took a good solid hour away from each other before we returned to debate again.

We also had reports from the _TailBlade_ that they'd located the two things inside an underground cave of some sorts and were waiting for instructions from their captain. It was a deliberate insult to Rtaia, but she either didn't pick it up or decided to ignore it. Ax went to talk to them one-on-one, and probably beat them down a step or two as well.

And then I'd launched my crazy new idea, and afterwards everyone started chattering away at once. It kind of gave me a headache. But it also meant they were all considering it.

Cassie hadn't really said anything. But I knew... she was probably blaming herself to an extent. I was still annoyed at her, and decided to just let her stew in her own juices for a while. Let her think about it. I guess Jake and the others had the same idea.

"You. Are. INSANE!!" Marco yelled, grabbing my shoulders and shaking me.

"Yeah, I am. I'm also ticked off that we lost so many people when it could have been prevented" I said, pulling his hands off my shoulders. I carefully avoided looking at Cassie, but they all knew what I meant.

"You could... but what about..." Amanda stuttered, indicating to my stitches.

"I say we do this all the way, and worry about the consequences later" Jake said. He looked straight at me, and I stared straight back. With us, this thing was a little more personal.

"Yep, no arguments there" Robert said, smiling at me.

"Left out again" Tobias muttered, sitting at the table with his head in his hands. I felt sorry for him. I also knew he'd be safe if he just followed the plan.

"Not quite, but it's either that or... uh..." I shrugged, not knowing what else to say to him. Thankfully, Rachel leaned down and hugged him from behind. He didn't seem to mind that.

"Five to a team. But... Jade... I can't..." Amanda looked hopelessly up at me.

"Mandy, you can _do_ this. I trust you" I said, walking over and grabbing her shoulders gently. I looked into those eyes that were once so vacant I thought I'd never get my friend back. But she pulled through then, like she always did. She managed to help when others were helpless. I trusted her with my life. And Robert had helped me to show her and Ithiell what they needed to do. It all relied on her and Ithiell... as well as Robert and I. Rtaia had her part too, only it wasn't as vital as ours. She didn't know what needed to be done... but we _did_. Still, Amanda was afraid she'd mess up. But I believed in her. I knew when push came to shove... she could do it.

She stared back at me and nodded, biting her lip nervously.

"Okay. I'll do it. I'll go kick some butt" She said, and I smiled at her.

"You're all bloody crazy!!" Marco was yelling, paced around the room tugging at his hair every now and then.

"Why, aren't you?" Robert said almost casually. Marco just looked at him, wild-eyed, then looked like he had no idea what to say. He punched a wall, paced some more, before going and sitting down, dropping his head on the table with a soft thud.

"In other words, yeah" Ithiell looked at Marco, before turning back to us.

"Think you can keep an eye on the time for us while we're in morph?" Jake asked Ithiell, looking at his best friend, then turned his eyes on Ithiell.

"Earth hours, right?"

"How many times do I have to say to you lunatics, they're not _earth_ hours, they're _everyone's_ hours!" Marco growled, his head still on the table.

"Not really..." he started to argue with Marco, then dropped it "I might be able to keep approximately the right time for you, but not _exactly_"

"Good, then that's all we'll really need"

"I don't see why we don't just go after them now, lead them..."

Rtaia cut Rachel off.

"Because the caves are dark, and those creatures will be able to use that against us. Not to mention the fact that the caves of the tunnel are too small for someone like you in grizzly bear morph to fight them. They also have the advantage of having extra limbs in which to..."

"We get it Rtaia. We get it!" I said a little exasperatedly.

"Then why not blow the damn things up with the ships lasers!" Rachel yelled, looking at each of us in turn, her eyes finally landing on Jake.

"Because we don't know what effect that'll have on the planet. We could inadvertently destroy the entire planet while we do" Ithiell told her. She just looked at him and glared.

"What's wrong Xena? Stakes too high for you this time?" Marco mocked, and I noticed he'd sat up and was looking at her.

"Oh _that's _it!" Rachel ran at him, fists raised, ready to beat him down. But to my surprise... to everyone's surprise... Robert blocked her, grabbing her wrist as she prepared to swing her fist at Marco.

"Hey wow, Rachel, calm down"

"_You_ calm down! I've had all I can take of this... this..."

"He's a runt. Let it go" He let go of her wrist, and after a tense moment she stepped back a little, nodding.

"Okay, we go tonight, when they start to move. But we have _got_ to be fast, before they get a chance to go after anyone else, got it?" Jake asked, looking at each of us. We got it. We definitely got it. Even Marco, who we all knew would go along with it anyway.

Then he looked at me. "Now all we need to worry about is you"

I shook my head, smiling.

"No, you don't" I watched as he nodded, a little darkly, seemed to accept what I said.

"Okay, meet back at..." he looked at Ithiell.

"We meet back at about four-thirty. Don't worry, I'll make sure we're all awake before then. I'll just get Genge to issue a yellow alert, all right"

"Sure. Sounds good to me" Jake said, smiling and yawning before he adjourned the meeting and we all started heading off. We all needed some sleep, and maybe something to eat. Maybe I could wash my hair or something...

Before I left though, I grabbed Robert's arm. He looked strangely at me, but stayed anyway.

"I just want to say... uh... thanks for defending Marco. It was..."

"I just didn't want those two in any worse shape than we all are now" He said casually, but he smiled down at me anyway. I returned the smile.

"And thanks for... you know, making me understand..."

"I didn't _make_ you do anything Jade. I just told you the truth"

"Well, maybe I needed a good slap in the face. Thanks, and..."

"Thank me after I've saved your sorry butt tonight" He said, patting me on the shoulder before walking off too, and I watched him walk away.

Little did I know just how much those words would mean.

_**----------------------------------------------x----------------------------**_

That afternoon, we were all assembled near the open hatch. Ax, Lowri, Genge and Keera were with us. Keera and Genge, as always, were worried about their 'captain'. Lowri was worried about all of us, and Ax was coming with me. If it all came down to it, I knew I'd need him most of all. With Robert and Amanda's help, I had made sure Lowri knew what to do if we failed. He understood, and he would risk everyone just to pull it off. He didn't have a choice.

Before we headed off, the others needed to know if we could morph and shape-shift all right. They knew Jake would be fine, but... me, well, with the stitches... if I got caught off-guard, I might very well bleed to death.

Jake went first, morphing his tiger in record time. When he demorphed he was whole again. Ithiell had grabbed an instrument from the sickbay and checked him over. He checked out fine, for now.

"Your turn Jade" he said, and I nodded and gave myself some space, taking a deep breath before focusing my mind on a small animal. And the first thing I changed was my stomach. I focused hard, making sure the stitches disappeared into the form, hoping it worked. I opened my eyes and looked down to see it had. I know had this giant grey-blue patch of fur all around my waist and my stomach.

"All the way Jade. Since we're going to be doing that form anyway" Ithiell instructed, and I nodded, continuing to focus. My ears shifted to the top of my head and my eyes turned big and white. My legs turned spindly, and there was an itching in my mouth as my teeth changed to suit the eating style of this particular animal. I shrunk rapidly, and as my shape changed and my feet became little claws, I felt the skin flaps emerge from under my arm, connecting my torso and arm together. Little bones formed on them, and fur rippled across the rest of my body. Finally, I was a Chanaiben version of a small bat. A _Chudnit._

My eyes saw the world in grey and yellow, but I had echolocation like normal bats, that could usually fill in the picture I was seeing. And at night... oh man, at night it's like nothing you could ever imagine. Compared to the _Chudnit_, what tiger eyes see at night is _nothing_.

"Now reverse it"

I did, saving my stomach and stitches for last. Finally, I was back to my old self, and Ithiell came and checked me over.

"Well, you're both all right for now, but..."

"Yeah, ok. Let's go" Jake said tersely, since the sun was already starting to disappear behind the horizon, and if we weren't in the air by then...

I watched as the Animorphs morphed bats, then focused as I realised my group was already changing. Five ordinary brown earth bats and five funny looking Chanaiben _Chudnits_. I watched Amanda as she blinked, and all of a sudden her eyes were big and all white. Yeah, all white. Robert's ears were getting big and sliding to the top of his head as I shrunk, and Ithiell's nose was turning into the funny three slitted nose of the _Chudnit_. Finally, we were all small bats or bat-like creatures, all testing our little wings or trying out our echo-location.

(Marco? Which one are you?) I asked privately.

(Uh, the here) he replied, sticking a little clawed hand up and trying to wave it, but he lost his balance and fell over. I walked awkwardly over to him on my little _Chudnit_ feet, trying to help him up using my little nose.

(I'm ok. Jeez, was that embarrassing) he said as he righted himself.

(Think bat) I said laughing a little as I nudged him with my nose. He turned his nose to mine and we touched noses.

(Uhh... sorry, I don't think you're my type. You're really pretty and all... oh heck, why lie? You're freakin' terrifying!) He fell backward this time, on purpose. Then he began to right himself again, laughing at his own joke.

(Oh very funny) I replied as I stepped back, nearly falling over myself. Bat bodies were seriously never meant to walk upright.

(Okay, everybody ready?) Jake asked. We were.

(All right then. MOVE OUT!)

We all took to the air, flapping madly to get above Lowri and the others.

(Okay, you know what to do) Ithiell said to Lowri as we all flew out in single file.

(Let's do it!) Rachel yelled, laughing giddily. I couldn't help but laugh with her.

(I wondered when you were gonna say that) Marco told her as I finally soared out into the darkening landscape, feeling free as a bat could ever feel. Especially in this place.

(How do we attempt to catch these creatures if they do not separate like we have predicted?) Ax asked.

(We take 'em both down at once, that's what) Robert answered for us. He was right too.

(One way or another, we're ending this nightmare _tonight_) Cassie said, startling all of us.

(Cassie?) I asked, letting out a small _Chudnit _chirp.

(Look, I know what I said was wrong before, ok? But now... if they've become a threat, we've..... we have to...) Cassie seemed to be having trouble saying it.

(It's all right Cassie, we know. And I'm sorry for...)

(No Amanda, don't be. Your instincts were right. Maybe I'm just a...)

(A tree-hugging lunatic?) Marco supplied.

(I don't know what I am anymore. I thought...)

(Cassie, you're one of us. All you need to know is that you're an absolute maniac like the rest of us, ok?) Robert said gently.

(What's _us_ exactly? Do we have a name for the... what? _Eleven_ of us?) Marco asked.

(Yeah. The Lunatics) Ithiell said, and we all managed a weak laugh. But the fact was... this was probably the most dangerous 'mission' we'd ever been on.

(Okay, I see them.... Jeez! They move fast!) Jake exclaimed as we caught site of them going in completely different directions. I'd also noticed something else....

(They're huge! They're like full-grown now or something! And they're... they're...)

(Oh my god! It's one of each!!)

(Oh crap!) I cried, watching as the Tahjinn moved off in a completely different direction from the Tahjett.

(My god, you're right! This might be harder than we thought...) Robert trailed off.

(Split up! Two teams! You know the drill!) Jake yelled.

(Got it! Splitting up!)

Robert, Ax, Rtaia, Rachel and I veered off after the Tahjinn, and the others went after the Tahjett.

(Jade, you're in charge now, ok? You know what to do) Jake called back, making sure everyone heard him. I guess he did it more for Rachel's benefit though.

(Yeah, ok) I replied as the sun finally vanished completely behind the horizon, and we all started to use our echo-location. The greys and yellows of the landscape turned a tainted blue, and as I fired off my clicks, I saw the world like it was day. And I saw the Tahjinn. Somehow... I knew it was the one from out of me. I knew it!

And I was going to make it pay dearly for all the pain it caused me and others... Kumatt and who knows how many others. It was going to pay. Oh yes, it was...

**Next chappie; the fight gets ugly! AAAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!**


	16. true danger

**Squidink:Thankyou! That was a very... uh... well rounded review. It's nice you like it so much!**

**LittleMidgett: Have fun on your holiday!**

****

**Rating in case I swear in this...**

**Here's where it gets serious...**

**Pffft!! Who am I kidding?!!! AAAHAHAHAHHHAHAHAH!!**

**Lunatic? I am. I am a lunatic. Got any questions? :)**

We flew like bats shot out of a cannon, just barely keeping the Tahjinn in our sights. It reached what looked like a stretch of trees... although I couldn't be sure in our haste.

(How do we get on the ground long enough for us to morph and attack it?!) Rachel cried in frustration. She and Ax were seriously being left behind. To our surprise, the _Chudnit_ body was actually a better flyer than the average bat. And faster.

(I don't _know_ okay?! I didn't know it could run for this long!) I yelled back.

(I believe we may be able to track it by following the tar it is oozing) Ax said.

(But we can see it! We're not going to...)

(No! Ax is right! We land and then follow the mess it's made after we're done)

(But that means we loose sight of it and what happens if...!)

(Fine then, _you_ tail it and tell us where it goes, all right?!) Rachel yelled at Robert.

(NO! I need Robert with me! Rtaia, keep on it and make sure you don't...)

(I'll do what I can) She replied as we swooped down to the ground, landing just to the side of the sticky tar stuff it was leaving behind. As Ax and Rachel quickly demorphed, Robert and I went straight from bat to wolf, taking off after the creature.

(Go wolf and catch up when you can!)

"Oh what the..." Rachel trailed off, and we left them to finish their demorph. We ploughed on, the stench of the creature nearly overwhelming to our wolf senses.

(I believe the creature has stopped. It is... creating something with its funny feet and the tar-like material it oozes. It is criss-crossing these vine size strings...)

(Oh don't tell me it's like a spider too!!) Robert yelled as we pushed our bodies as fast as they could go.

(It must be creating a web of some kind! But why...)

(That's how it catches its prey!)

(What prey! They don't _have_ prey here!)

(Yes they do! Us!)

(It has created a structure in the trees ahead of you like what humans would call a spider web. It is slightly above the ground, yet well hidden... oh!)

(Oh? Rtaia, what's _oh?_)

(It attempted to catch me by throwing one of the vines up like a whip! It thinks I am its food!)

(Bail! Fall back and get dangerous! Ax, Rachel! You too! Think the biggest thing you can and catch up!) I yelled, pulling slightly ahead of Robert...

(I think I see it... I can't be sure... it looks so much like...)

(Robert, don't stop! Keep going!)

(Jade no!) I stopped, but... no, I was skidding! Skidding across the tar stuff it put down... back-pedalled... no! Not enough... still going...

(AHHHHH!!) I hit something big and sticky and it pulled me up.

"Ah, firsssst catch of the day"

(How the fuck does that thing know how to talk?!) Robert yelled.

(Like I have any idea!) I wailed as it pulled me up until I finally saw the creature. It was big... just as big as the Tahjinn that caught us before. I couldn't see its face, but I knew it would look exactly like the other one.

"I know who you are. You're Jade. You were meant to be my meal, but you got away"

(You... how do you know my name? How do you know me?) I demanded struggling to break free as it sat only two metres away.

"I have taken ssssome of your cellssss. I know everything about you" it almost purred as I struggled... and I broke one paw free...

Tzzzaaap!!

(AHHHH!!!)

(What the...) Robert.

My left paw went numb. It had struck me with a...

(Its tentacles! They're like... I dunno... like jellyfish! Guys, watch out!)

(Why didn't anyone tell us about this?!) Rachel yelled almost angrily from further off.

(They probably didn't know!) Robert cried as it inched closer to me, then stopped. I struggled again, pulling a leg from the...

Tzzzzzappp!!

Right leg was numb!

(Guys! A little...)

(Almost there! Hold on Jade!) Rachel cried.

Movement from behind me! Robert was on the tar ropes, running at the creature! He leaped!

Tzzzzaapp!!!

(NOOOOOOO!!!)

The thing struck him with at least six tentacles, then threw him off to the side somewhere.

(Robert? Oh god, ROBERT!!)

(What happened?!) Rachel yelled at me.

(It got Robert! Oh god... Robert! Can you hear me!)

Nothing! And I couldn't see him!

That's when an elephant, a rhino and Ax came into view.

(Ax, you shouldn't...!)

(Forget that!) Rachel snapped, powering her legs and charging at me and the creature. The rhino followed close behind.

"What weak creaturessss" it said, pulling me up and away from my friends, and Rachel screamed in frustration. But it wasn't done with them yet. It crawled down one of the tar ropes it had created, oozing still, and hung inches above Rachel's head.

(Come down here... come down here and fight!) Rachel screamed in pure frustration. She reared up and...

Tzzzzzapp!!

Tzzzzzaaappp!!

Tzzzzzzaaapp!!

The Tahjinn struck her three times with six tentacles! She staggered back, then fell, nearly crushing Rtaia.

(Rachel! Rachel, are you ok?!)

No answer. She was knocked out cold.

(Hold on Jade, I will attempt to...)

(NO! GET BACK!! THAT THING...!!)

I watched as the creature made its way to the ground, and stood about five or six metres away from Rtaia. Taunting her!

Rtaia snorted, pawed the ground with her front foot, then ran full speed at the creature!

(RTAIA NOOOO!!!)

The Tahjinn dodged and Rtaia went barrelling past. Then...

Tzzzzaapppp!! Tzzzzzzzaappp!!

Hit her in the side with the six tentacles! Her left side went numb, and she stumbled and skidded across the ground, her momentum taking her forward.

(RTAIA!!!)

(Rtaia! Rtaia!) Ax cried. Nothing. Again...

(Ax run!!)

(I... I cannot leave her!)

(Ax do it!)

(I refuse!!) he yelled, then ran at the creature, his tail held high and ready. The Tajinn mocked him, waving all of its deadly tentacles in the air, feet planted and ready.

(NO!! NO!! DON'T DO IT!!)

Fwwwaapp!!

Ax stuck! Now the thing had one less arm... but...

The Tahjinn struck back! Five tentacles now snapped at Ax, hitting him in his legs, his arms, and his tail! And he couldn't do anything to stop it!

Ax fell, paralysed and probably a little woozy. He tried to move... he moved his eye stalks around helplessly.

"Ah, an impressssive sssspecimen. But you have ssssevered one of my armssss, and I believe I must repay that favour. You will be my firsssst meal" it said, moving closer to him, then wrapping other tentacles around his body.

(AX NOOOOO!!!)

(Can't... breathe... suffocating...) he gasped. I struggled, finding the paralysing affect was only temporary, but not enough that I could free myself from the sticky net.

(Ax! Ax! Fight it!)

(Can't... can't move... need air...)

(Ax! Aaaaaaaaaaaaxxx!!!)


	17. fighting fire with fire

**Got you on the edge, don't I. Haha... well, here it is....**

(AAAAAAAAAAAAAXXXXXXX!!!)

(Hang on buddy!!)

Suddenly... movement! From the left! It was... elephant! Robert! He was all right!

He barrelled into the Tahjinn, knocking it roughly off, then throwing his head and sending it flying out of sight.

(Robert! You're ok!)

(Yep. All good here) he went over to Ax, who was passed out on the ground.

(Ax, if you can hear me, I need you to morph. Morphing should counter the paralysing effect that things tentacles have. Rtaia, Rachel?)

(Yeah, I hear you. But... I can't... that creature could...)

(I've got that covered for now. Rtaia, get wings and help me out here)

(I... yes...)

I saw Rtaia changing. Feathers began to grow... then my attention was diverted to the other elephant as blond hair sprouted from its head, and she began to shrink. When she was small enough, Robert picked her up with his trunk and put her on his back.

Ax... was he all right?

(Ax? Are you ok?) I struggled some more, feeling the effect wearing off and starting my own shift to tiger. I needed night eyes, but I couldn't become the creature I needed to be just yet. I broke free of the net and leaped down, landing on my big kitty paws.

I saw Ax, skin become grey and leathery, then he began to grow.

(Oh thank god Ax! Are you all right? Did you...)

(I am fine. And I am... I am sorry for being so foolish) he replied as he got to his feet next to me to finish his morph.

(That's ok. You love Rtaia and... I understand, ok? Now lets just get this thing for good, ok?)

(All right)

I looked around, searching the darkness for the creature. The others did the same, and I saw Rachel slip off Robert, already growing big ears and a trunk. Nothing! We lost it!

(Damn! Where'd it go?!) Rachel snapped as she and Robert lumbered up next to us. Now I was surrounded by three very big elephants.

(I thought I saw something a moment ago... yet, I cannot be sure. Not even my owl eyes can see much under the cover of the trees) Rtaia said, and I noticed she'd took to the sky and was circling above the tree line.

(That's all right. Stay up there, as far as you can! Don't let it get you, but keep searching)

(I will)

I nodded, searching the trees until...

Movement!

(Come on! Let's go!) I yelled, bounding forward. The others lumbered behind me.

(Jade, I think it is best if we use cau...)

(AAHHHH!!) Something grabbed me! Pulling me up into the trees. The tentacles! The damn things tentacles had me! The ones that weren't paralysers! It pulled me up, towards the tree line, and with my eyes I could see...

(Oh no you bloody well don't!) Robert yelled, and all at once there was a trunk wrapped around my back leg, pulling. It was like a tug of war! Robert pulled! The Tahjinn pulled! And I felt like I was being ripped in half!

(It's all right! We've got you!) Rachel yelled, and in an instant two more trunks were wrapped around my bottom half, pulling with all their strength. The Tahjinn pulled back! But it was loosing! Nothing can fight the awesome power of the elephants all working together.

But... I was being stretched! Pulled apart at the seams! And my body was feeling the strain!

(Let go of me!) I yelled, letting loose a roar that would have grown men wetting themselves. It hesitated, but for only a second. And in that second my friends pulled me free! Rachel and Ax let go, and Robert placed me on the ground.

"No more mercy!" it hissed, then took off into the night!

(No! Not again!)

(Jade! I think it's time we brought out the heavy artillery!)

(Right! Hang back though! We don't want to give it a heads up or anything!)

(Gotcha!) He pulled back as Rachel and Ax lumbered after it, like they were supposed to, and Rtaia watched overhead. I closed my eyes and began my own change.

There was a saying once; fight fire with fire. I always wondered how you could really do that. I mean, fire? Against another fire? (keep in mind I was about eight or nine years old) but now... I was going to put that saying to the test. I was going to become a Tahjinn. And Robert was my trump card.

I felt my body become the oozing tar of the Tahjinn, and my arms and legs begin to reform... the tentacles that shot out from my back, and the sickening feeling as the tar reached my mouth, then continued to slime its way down my wind pipe as well as down to my stomach. My eyes became black pools, and my legs grew as big and thick and four toes spread out from each of the stumped ends. I stood up, looking around and suddenly seeing it was day. Night vision. And my tentacles... six of them were used to stun my prey, long enough for me to trap it and open my jaw... which I now found was a lot like a snakes jaw... and eat it whole...

I reached for one of the trees with my tentacles, amazed at how well it moved. Like an arm, or... a monkeys tail. I pulled myself up with five of my tentacles, finding how easily this creature moved. I'd pulled myself up and I hardly felt it!

I also! I smelled...

My friends! And... one new smell. Something... familiar to...

The Tahjinn! I could smell the Tahjinn!

_Good..._

I moved with ease, racing effortlessly across the trees, smelling the Tahjinn, knowing I was getting closer to that and my friends...

(AAHHHHH!!) I heard Ax scream, and I reached a clear patch of forest to see one of the elephants stumble back, falling as it did so. Then I saw why. There was tar in his eyes.

(It just shot some of that tar stuff at Ax! It... spat it or something!) Rachel screamed as she backed up a little, and I finally saw the Tahjinn. It was hanging off a tree with two of it's tentacles... it face masked in absolute fury. Then it saw me.

"Who are you?" It hissed "Thissss issss _my _food! _MINE!!_"

I didn't say anything. I only moved down off the trees and across to Ax.

(Jade?) Rachel asked me privately.

(Don't worry, it's me) I told her, moving around them to stand in between the Tahjinn and my friends.

"What are you doing? They're _my_ food!!" It hissed, dropping from the tree and threatening me by waving its tentacles my way. I imitated it. It tried to 'spit' at me, but it missed.

And I just did it right back, before it could react. It hit its eyes, dead centre, and the Tahjinn wailed.

(Hey, you just showed me some really neat tricks. Thanks) I said, then zapped it the way it had zapped me and my friends. Good thing it had the same effect. I paralysed all its tentacles as it was still wailing and trying to scrape the goop out of its eyes with its human-like hands. But... well, it didn't help since its hands had the same things on it. Ironic really.

I zapped and zapped until I was worn out and the thing was in a heap on the ground, wailing and crying out in its own tongue now that it couldn't get up.

"It'ssss you, issssn't it? You are me" It said, and I leaned down with my very human waist and upper body, putting my face just inches from its own.

"Yesssss" I said in Tahjinn, almost gleefully. Well, my own insides nearly made me want to puke, but knowing I had it now... it just felt _too_ good not to relish.

(Robert?)

And then the final act, turned up. It had eight heads, eight legs, and eight funny jointed arms. It was the thing that Visser Three had become once, when I first met him face-to-face, to try and scare me. Now, it was Robert.

(Everything ready here?)

(Yup, when you're ready, you can go for it) I said as I backed up next to Ax, now fully Andalite, and Rachel. The Tahjinn still wailed as it helplessly tried to flail its limbs.

_Fight fire with fire._

(Alrighty then) he pulled one of his heads back, and launched a fire ball straight at the creature. It hit, and the whole thing ignited in flames. I guess being all tar you can kind of be vulnerable to... I dunno, say, fire?

It burned and writhed in agony, screaming in pain. Robert launched another fireball, and it burned some more.

(Okay, that's enough Robert. You can stop there) I said, as I watched it, feeling only the slightest trace of pity for it. But just the slightest.

Robert moved over to us, becoming human again, and I saw Rachel had done the same. Rtaia joined us as I returned to myself, feeling a little out of it, but I guess that was to be expected. We all watched as it burned... and burned... and burned, until there was nothing left of it, and we were once again in darkness, with only the stars to light our way.

"Let's go" I said, turning and walking out of the wooded area, with the others following. We walked towards where we saw the faintest of light. I knew we'd be safe there, and...

"Oh!" I cried, collapsing so suddenly it caught even me off-guard. I thought I'd tripped, but then...

I touched my stomach, suddenly finding a lot more blood than should be there.

"Your stiches! They've... oh my god!" Robert cried, falling to his knees beside me as I finally looked down and saw my shirt drenched with my own blood. I felt a bit light-headed, but then again, what was new?

"But... I didn't..."

"You probably did not focus hard enough when you were returning to your true form" Rtaia said, kneeling on the other side of me.

(If you like, I would be happy to take you back by...) I never heard the rest of what Ax said, because at that moment, I passed out.

I later learned that someone had picked me up and taken me all the way back to the ship, just carrying me. And that someone... was Robert.

**Told you I was nuts. Good or what? Next chappie; did the other team make it? Next time...**


	18. The mighty have fallen

**karone-sakura (sp?)- thanks for all your support... here's tha next chappie 4 u...**

**Okay, I'm doing this from Jake's Pov, just because I didn't seem to have any complaints about it before. And it's the only way I can write this chappie. So, here it goes...**

**Jake**

(Marco? MARCO!)

(Unngh... anyone get the number of that bus that ran me over?)

(Uhhh..... y-eah. He's fine)

(Or was it a truck?)

(_FINE_?!) Amanda yelped (My god, he's _delirious!_)

(No he's not. He's just being himself)

(Got that right) Marco said, fluttering his left wing helplessly on the ground (I saw it! That damn bus _hit_ me!)

(Oooookaayy... maybe he _is_ delirious)

(Gotcha!) Ithiell suddenly sprang from the trees, sweeping Marco up in his powerful wolf jaws, and darting the Tahjetts paralysing tentacles. Good thing wolves are so agile.

He vanished from sight under the cover of the trees as the Tahjett hissed at him, waving its tentacles menacingly.

"That wassss _my _meal! _MINE!!_"

(Hey! We're not anybody's meal you stupid truck!) Marco yelled from somewhere under the trees.

(Marco, would you just focus for once in your life?!) I called down to him as Cassie and I circled overhead, waiting for an ok from Amanda. She'd gone down first, with Ithiell, so that if there was trouble, they'd be able to deal with it better than us as humans. Marco had gone down too close to the creature, and was nearly its entree.

(Ok, do it) Amanda said and we dropped into the trees. I heard Amanda barrelling out, drawing its attention away from us while we demorphed. An elephant would be able to stand a chance against the Tahjett. At least, that's what we hoped.

I quickly rose from the bushes as I heard an elephant trumpeting, and that was soon joined by a second one. Ithiell. Finally, I was human again, and I squinted to see vague outlines of my friends trying to keep the Tahjett at bay.

(Hurry up! We can't do this alone!) Ithiell yelled to us, sounding slightly panicked.

I looked at Cassie, or the outline of Cassie's form, and nodded. Big. We were going to get very big. I concentrated on the rhinoceros DNA I had within me, feeling the changes begin slowly at first, then faster. My face stretched out, and two horns erupted from my nose. My legs turned big and thick, and the little ropy tail sprouted out of my back. Then the rest of my body decided to grow. Beside me, Cassie was becoming a full grown African elephant. The plan; to distract the Tahjett and keep it at bay while Amanda and Ithiell shape-shifted into the things we needed. One was a Tahjinn, the other... the horrible monster Visser Three became in our very first battle with the Yeerks. If it hadn't been for him, Tom might have escaped that night, and I wouldn't have had to kill him...

(Cassie, you're going to have to guide me. I can barely see!)

(No problem. A little to your left... guys watch out... and... charge!)

I charged, running on my four massive legs, seeing a very dim shape of something and heading straight for it, hoping it wasn't one of my friends. When I hit something soft and wet, sending it flying, I knew it wasn't.

(Hey, good hit!) Ithiell said, sounding surprised.

(Yeah. Now get back and get big and mean) I told him.

(On it!)

(Marco, you're veering too far to the left... right a little more... go for it!) Amanda's voice cut through the haze. There was a soft _whack! _before something came skidding across the ground, near me.

(Ha! Spot on! Thanks Amanda!)

(Not a prob. Dropping back now)

(Good. Hurry up)

WHAP!!

(Ahhhhh!!!)

(Cassie!!)

(My trunk is numb! I can't move it!)

(How did it...)

(That damn thing's faster than we thought!)

(Guys, watch it!) I warned.

(Oh, you think?!!) Marco said shrilly.

(Cassie, guide me and Marco! We'll take care of it!)

(Okay... Marco, to turn to you right... a little more... charge!!)

(Ahhhh!!!)

(What?! What happened?!)

(Got my left leg with those paralysers!)

(Hang on guys! I'm almost done!)

(Cassie!)

(Left Jake! NO, a little more right! Go... no, turn your head! Yes!)

My horn hit something, and I thought I saw something moving in the near-darkness. Then whatever it was came back and slapped my front legs, and I was down!

(Urgh!!)

(Jake!!)

(I'm ok! Cassie, just...)

(I'm here! Guys, back off and demorph!)

(What about Ithiell?!)

(Almost done! Amanda, you can do this!)

(I know that!) Something passed me, making me jerk my head towards it. But it was faster, and sidestepped my horns.

(Amanda?)

(Yep, just me!) Then I heard a hissing voice again...

"What are you doing here? You're ssssuppossssed to be getting your own food"

"Thisss issss my food" Amanda replied in the same hissing tone.

(Eeeeeeuuck! I'm going to throw up!)

(No you're not) I said as I felt a horn nudging me, pushing me along a little.

(Come on man, start demorphing) Marco said.

(Where's Cassie? Cassie!)

(She's ahead of us. Come on Jake, move it!)

I demorphed quickly, and as I became lighter, Marco slid me into the undergrowth, before he joined me, slowly shrinking. When I was fully human, I looked around and saw Cassie join us.

"You lossst me my food. You will pay" The Tahjett hissed at Amanda. Amanda hissed back just as menacingly. I watched closely in the near-darkness as it waved its four tentacles, and Amanda responded. But I'd seen the thing moving quickly to us from the left, and I knew Amanda would be all right.

(Amanda, back off a little. I'm going to blow this thing to smithereens)

(I can't! It'll just follow)

(You're tentacles Amanda! Surely if it can paralyse, so can you)

(You never know... hey wait! I can feel it. I have six that can! Heh heh heh...)

_Don't get too cocky_, I thought as Cassie and Marco stood on either side of me, all of us watching and waiting, seeing if they needed some help or not.

(Good, then...)

(Ahhh!! Oh, that's just... ha ha! See how you like that, you little...) Amanda had been whipped by the tentacles, but she simply turned it around and whipped back. It screamed in rage and agony.

(Amanda, now!)

Amanda practically slithered backwards as a ball of flame hit the Tahjett dead centre, and it screamed in pain. Inside, I felt some satisfaction that this thing was getting what it deserved.

Another ball hit it, and it screamed in pain again, being engulfed by the fire. It tried to run, but Amanda stopped it, nearly getting burnt herself.

(Oh! Hot! Hot!)

(It's all right, I got it!) Ithiell yelled, grabbing the Tahjett with his strange arms, throwing another fireball at the creature. Now, it couldn't escape. We watched as it burned... and burned... until it was no more than a pile of ashes in Ithiell's hands.

"Did we... is it really gone?" Cassie asked from beside me.

(It's gone) Ithiell assured her as he and Amanda began to shrink. Soon, it was just a small bunch of idiot teens in the middle of a black forest.

"Good. Can we leave now? This place is really starting to creep me out" Amanda said, shivering when she was fully human.

"Yeah. Let's go" I said. We morphed again, this time to owls, and flew back to the ship.

(I wonder how the others went) Marco mused as we flew.

(We won't know until we get back)

(Shouldn't we... you know, go look for them?) Amanda.

(No. They'll be ok) Ithiell responded. We flew in silence after that, until we saw the lights of the _Inaad_. But as we did, I knew immediately that something was wrong. The hatch was open, and Robert and Tobias were sitting on the bottom steps...

(Guys?)

(Yeah, I see them too)

(Out for a smoke?) Marco tried to joke, but his voice was tense.

(No... something's wrong) Cassie said (Look at their faces)

(You're right. Let's go see what it is)

We landed and demorphed in front of them. Robert didn't look up, but Tobias _did_.

"What is it? What's wrong?" I asked as soon as I had a mouth. I was afraid one of the others were dead.

"It's Jade. She's... critical condition. Lost a lot of blood..." Tobias choked out.

"What... from fighting the Tahjinn?"

"No" Robert said, although he still hadn't looked up "Her stitches came out, and she was bleeding... I got her here just in time. She's gotten bad. Too much blood lost..."

"Is she... we can't let her die!" Marco cried.

"No. We need someone else's blood"

"Whose?! I'll give anything to..."

"Rachel's blood matched hers. Type O. I don't know about any of you... she's getting a transfusion as we speak" He finally looked up at us. His face was pale. Worried.

"Well... is it..."

"Jake, they think you can maybe help too. If you..."

"Sure. I'll do anything I can to help" I said. The sight of Robert so concerned made me worried.

"Good. Because if she dies, so do you"

_**-----------------------------------------x-----------------------------**_

I gave what blood I could, shocked at seeing Jade so still and so pale. She almost looked dead. And that wasn't what I wanted to see. I wanted to see her happy with Marco again. I wanted to see her and Robert going one-on-one about the stupid things they always did. Laugh with the girls about who-knows-what. That's what I wanted. Not this deathly figure laying flat on the table, still in her blood-drenched clothing.

The next few days only the doctors and nurses went in, with the exception of Ithiell and Amanda. Not even Marco was allowed in. We all did our best to support him, but I could tell he was afraid for her. We all were. Rachel had no doubt in her mind that she'd be fine, and Ax vaguely agreed with her, but I could tell he wasn't sure.

A week later, we were allowed to visit her, one at a time. The girls went in first, then Marco, Tobias, Ax, Robert and finally me.

I walked in, looking down at her. She didn't look much different from the week before. Besides the fact that her eyes were open this time. And they looked as bright as ever.

"Hey, how are you?"

"All right. Could be worse. I could be dead"

I winced "Don't say that. We don't want to..."

"Yeah, yeah, I know" She said, waving at me dismissively. I sat beside her on the chair, and she turned her head to look at me. I noticed someone had changed her clothes as well. Probably Amanda.

"I'm sorry" I suddenly blurted.

"What do you have to be sorry about? It was _my_ suicide plan"

"I mean..." I don't know what I meant. I felt guilty that I was fine, while she was lying here, recovering from a near-death experience.

"Don't worry. I'll be fine. A little rest and then I'll be the pain in the butt you all know and love" she smiled at me. I forced a smile back.

"Jade, I..."

"Don't get all sappy on me. Amanda, Cassie and even _Marco_ have already done that"

"I'm not..." I sat up straight "I just wanted to say... I'm glad you're all right"

"Well so am I" There was an awkward silence for a few minutes.

"Jade, I've heard that..."

"That Ithiell's going to go after Inaad? Yeah, I know. He was in here a few days ago, talking to me about it" she let out a weak laugh "But of course at that time I was still in a fuzzy daze. And before you say anything, no, I did _not_ see a bright light. Robert asked me that" She added.

"But do you think you could... if we did go after her? Will you be..."

"Hey, I'll be fine. Ithiell's saved my butt countless times before, so it's only fair I return the favour" We sat in silence again before my time was up.

"Jade?"

"Yeah Jake?"

"Hurry up and get better so we can go kick some Yeerk butt" I said, getting up and patting her arm gently. She returned the smile.

"Jake, you know I will"

I stared at her.

"What?"

"I'll say this again; are you sure you're not a weird mix between my cousin and Marco?"

She laughed, sounding almost as strong as before "I wish Jake. Then I'd be smart _and_ fearless like you"

"Like... me?" She nodded, and laughed a little before Simai came in, ushering me out and going to do something with Jade. But before the door shut I turned back and saw her face. She was still grinning from ear to ear.

_I don't know who's worse_, I thought, _my cousin... or her?_

There are some things you just can't answer. This was one of them.


	19. Recovery

**Jade**

It took me at least two months to get back to 'almost' normal. A month to just get out of the sickbay and on my feet again. And I had to learn how to walk again, since I hadn't used my legs in so long. The first day I was out of the sickbay, Amanda and Cassie helped hold me up as I tried my best to walk properly. Rachel was there too, and nearby in case I fainted or something. I can tell you, just taking the first few steps outside was a relief. But also terrifying in a way. I couldn't explain it...

"Wow! Careful. One step at a time!" Cassie warned. She was on my left side, and Amanda was on my right.

"Yeah, yeah, I know" I muttered, forcing my legs to move. I was going to walk on my own by the end of the day, no matter what. I was sick of being treated like a cripple, and not being able to do things for myself. It made me feel weak, in a way.

"That's it, you're getting it!" Amanda cried happily.

"Amanda, I've known how to walk since I was about eighteen months old. This is.... just a little retraining, ok?"'

"We know. Doesn't mean you can't still take it easy"

"No. I have to be ready soon. The longer we're here on the Canask planet, the further away Inaad and her ship gets. And if we loose her... for better or worse... I know Ithiell will never forgive himself"

"She's got a point, you know" Rachel said, slapping one of the instruments Simai gave her into her other hand. It was to keep a check on my vitals, see that this wasn't doing more harm than good. My stomach still hurt, but the wound itself had been closed. All I needed to do was worry about the stitches on the inside. They would dissolve in time, when my stomach muscles and that had repaired themselves, but for now... well, I just had to be careful.

My left foot slipped, and Cassie caught my weight just before I started to slide. She repositioned her arm and my weight so it was comfortable for her again. Then I put my left foot down, carefully again. I was getting better, and feeling was beginning to come back into my legs. Then I heard a familiar shout and I looked up to see Tobias and Marco coming to greet us. They both looked happy considering.

"Hey, no one told us you were getting out of sickbay so early" Tobias exclaimed as Cassie and Amanda stopped, holding me up. I placed my feet down, hoping to relieve some of the strain they must have been feeling by holding me for so long.

"In a few days. This is just to help me get feeling back into my legs" I told him, catching a slight smile from Marco. Rachel took the time to put the instrument against my shoulder, like she had been instructed to, and checked how I was doing. It wasn't too bad either.

"Guys, let me go for a minute" I said to them.

"You sure?"

"Uh-huh. I think I can do it" They stepped away as I braced my feet on the ground. I seemed ok... then I felt myself falling forward.

"Grab her!" Tobias jumped forward and caught me before I fell face-forward on the ground. He and Marco hefted me up, and each wrapped an arm under my shoulders. I felt the strength from both of them. Amanda and Cassie had been having problems, I could tell. I felt light being held by the boys.

"You ok?" Cassie asked, looking embarrassed. I smiled and nodded.

"Yeah, I am. Sorry, I thought I could do it"

"Apparently not" Tobias said.

"Uh-huh"

"You're pushing yourself too much. Take it easy" Amanda said softly, looking into my eyes with those soulful brown ones of hers. I saw her concern, and I knew she was right.

"Yeah, I will. But... I'm still not planning on staying in that hospital for much longer"

"It's a sickbay, not a hospital" Marco said, smiling wryly at me. He was glad I was all right, I guess. Everyone was. And in spite of me telling them it was my dumbass plan to begin with, Jake and Ithiell still felt guilty.

But... man, that first week. I had never seen anyone cry as much as they did. Amanda, Cassie (barely getting out about a thousand sorry's all in one go) and even Marco. Now, that was a terrifying sight. Seeing a guy crying like that. It wasn't _bad_ or anything, just... unexpected coming from him.

It took another week before I could properly walk again, and at that time I was actually allowed to go back to my own quarters. Three weeks more... and the stitches inside me were gone. I was almost back to normal. Almost.

I walked around the ship, glad to be able to move again, and took a trip to the bridge. Rachel and Jake were on the bridge shift (Ithiell wasn't going to give me another shift until he knew I was ready).

"Hey" Rachel greeted me when she saw me, looking up from a book that she'd brought along. She'd been sitting in an empty chair, next to Kayleese. Jake was in the captains chair. He smiled as I entered, but other than that... there wasn't much more reaction from him.

"Hi guys. How's it going?"

"All right. A bit boring, honestly"

"Yeah" I agreed mildly, then got bored and decided to go visit Ax. I needed to talk to someone with a brain, and not with a guilty conscience or a pity face like the others. I went over to his ship, expecting to have no problems.

(Hey! Who are you?!) An Andalite male stopped me when I was almost at the hatch opening.

"A friend of your Prince. Now, if you don't mind..." I tried to move him aside, but he whipped his tail forward, straight at my throat. I hardly flinched.

"Nice" I murmured. At that point another Andalite came up to us, and I guess they were both speaking privately to one another.

(You are not permitted aboard an Andalite vessel)

"Is that so?" I asked, raising an eyebrow. These guys didn't scare me. Not one bit. The blade was still inches from my throat, but I knew... if my head went rolling, theirs would too. After all, we _were_ kind of the only humans on the planet, so they can't say I was _lying_...

(You have no authorisation)

"I'm human, and I'm not hostile. That kind of speaks for itself"

(We cannot permit you aboard the ship. You could damage...)

"Oh pul-leeze! Like I'm going to run around like a four year old pressing buttons and going '_what does this do?_' again and again and again" They looked at one another again, looking confused.

"Oh good grief! And Marco does worse than _I_ do!"

Again, the clueless look. I rolled my eyes at them.

Fortunately, my salvation came just at the right moment.

(What is the meaning of holding a blade to our human allies?!) roared a voice, and in seconds Ovatt was beside me, looking furious. One of them seemed to cringe, yet the other...

(Ovatt, stay out of this! You are a traitor to...)

(I am true to my Prince. And my Prince is Ithiell)

(But... Prince Aximili...) the second one stuttered. The tail blade was removed.

(Your Prince is not my Prince. I go only where Ithiell goes. He is more than a Prince, he is... he is a friend to us all)

(_Prince _Ithiell is not an Andalite, therefore...)

"You know _nothing _of loyalty then. And nothing of respect" On my other side, appeared Asen.

"Asen, Ovatt... I think know would be the time for the two of you to back off" I said calmly, knowing exactly where this was going. They both seemed to ignore me.

(Your _Prince_ allows females to fight! _Females!!_ Their small tail blades are...)

(That does not mean they cannot achieve great things! They are brave, even more so than you!)

"He is correct!"

Okay, this confrontation was turning bad. Especially when Asen was getting mad the Chanaiben male way. Ovatt's tail was twitching, and the Andalite from Ax's crew wasn't far behind him. The other was still shocked, and at that second I realised he was probably younger than me. A cadet.

"Go get your Prince" I said in a low voice to him "He can sort this out, ok?"

He seemed a little upset to be talked down to by a female, but I guess he knew I was right and turned and headed back into the ship. Man, I hate sexism. The others didn't even seem to notice he'd gone.

When he came back, he had Rtaia and Ax with him. And Ax... well, Ax looked like he was ready to kill.

(What is the meaning of this Menderash!) He roared, and I noticed Ovatt and Asen took that moment to back off. After all, they weren't a part of Ax's crew. Any discipline they had to face was from Ithiell.

(Sir, this human _female_ sought to board our ship, perhaps to...)

(To what Menderash? Steal our technology?)

(A... yes sir) I could tell this 'Menderash' guy was seriously shaken up. But he wasn't willing to let it go on this.

Ax looked at me with his stalk eyes, yet his gaze was fixed on Menderash.

(Jade, I apologise. My crew still seems to think other races are not as... worthy as ours)

"It's ok Ax. You can't change everyone's views on things" I replied honestly.

(As for you) he turned to his crewman (You will be stripped of your rank, and confined to quarters until I have no other choice but to use you. Which will not be for a long time)

(But sir...)

(But! But what _aristh_ Menderash?!)

Menderash backed up like he'd been slapped. Then he looked at me, before turning back to his Prince, bowing, and muttering an apology before going back into the ship.

Rtaia turned to look at me now. Then past me, and at Ovatt and Asen.

"The two of you will return to your Prince and explain your actions to him. Otherwise, _I_ will tell him"

"Yes sir!" Asen cried, bowing low and spreading his wings low and at his sides, before turning and running back to the _Inaad_. Ovatt bowed too, only when he looked up, he was smiling a little.

(Prince Aximili, Rtaia of the _Ipkla_ clan. I apologise for the inconvenience. I was merely assuring that the crew of the _TailBlade _did not fatally injure one of our human allies) He said this with such sincerity it was touching. Then he turned and left as well, kicking his hooves up and running as fast as he possibly could.

Then I turned back to Ax.

"So... hi. How you doing?"

(Is something wrong Jade?)

"No. Nothing. Just wanted to chat to you. Maybe ask you if you knew what Ithiell plans to do once we find that crazy looking ship of Inaads"

(He has... discussed it with us, yes) he replied, only hesitating when Rtaia slipped an arm through his. A public display of affection. I thought it was kind of cute. Although I'd never admit it to them.

"Well?"

"Jade, he plans to either 'get her back', or..." Rtaia hesitated now, frowning and looking down at the ground.

"Or? Or what?"

"Or kill her"

**So, watcha think? Getting suspenseful or what? Sorry if this was a bit boring though...**


	20. Ithiells decision

**Sorry this took so long guys. I've had writers block for a _really_ long time. I hope this doesn't disappoint anyone.**

Well, more months seemed to blow by, and by then we were no longer teenagers. We were off the Canask planet, and searching for ghosts in space again. Only this time… I felt almost calm about it. Perhaps the Tahjinn and the Tahjett did some good after all. I was more focused on our goal. Then again, maybe it was just because I'd had one near-death experience and I wasn't too eager on trying that again soon.

The three ships slipped in and out of Z-space countless times, and here and there we thought we'd found a lead, but it was really something else. Ithiell was getting frustrated, I could tell. Rachel was more so, and Jake… well, I'd hardly seen Jake since that day in the sickbay. Cassie was there… but she was distant as well. So it was up to the rest of us to continue the bridge shifts, and keep the 'troops' in line, as Robert said. Sure, Ithiell would assign them to shifts as well, but they rarely showed up. Rachel, I heard from Tobias, was too busy training with Asen. Cassie and Jake… who knew.

Robert and I got another bridge shift together, and for once we actually had a civil conversation. Funny huh? We'd become really good friends, and I liked that.

Soon, Ithiell decided that we all needed a day off. He assigned a skeleton crew for to run the ship, and we'd all be on call if there were any emergencies, but other than that… most of us we're allowed a break.

I spent a few hours with Marco, who loved our time together, and a bit with Amanda and Robert too. Tobias and I passed on the hallways, where he told me Cassie and Jake were just fine; they we're actually planning for their wedding when we all got home. Rachel was actually going to spend the day with him, and I told him I was glad. But the person I really wanted to talk to, was Ithiell.

Ithiell, Ax, and Lowri were working on an attack plan together through communications every now and then. Something about using the three ships to help get on board that big ship of Inaads. Or rather, the Yeerk that was inside Inaad.

I pushed the button on the side of his door (which was sort of like a little door bell) and from inside I heard a voice say,

"Come in"

I opened the door, and went in to find a human Ithiell buttoning the top buttons of his shirt as he turned to look at me. He gave me a funny look as I stared at his face.

"Ithiell?"

"Yeah Jade?"

"What are you… _why_ are you human? You don't need to…"

"Yes, I do"

"Huh? Why?"

"Walk with me. I'll explain on the way" he buttoned up the rest of his shirt, ushering me out the door. Together, we made our way side-by-side down the hallways.

"Jade, do you remember how I explained the mental bond between Chanaiben twins?"

"Yeah"

"Well, I have surmised… that while I am Chanaiben, Inaad… or the beast that calls herself Inaad… has a stronger mental link with me. And although I can shut the link for certain times, I still believe that if she has access to all of Inaad's memories like I think she does, she'll know if Inaad tries hard enough, she can break through my block"

"And this explains the reason you're human… why?"

"Because if I stay out of my true form for as long as possible, I believe that maybe a way to severely weaken the link"

"Hold on" I stopped and grabbed his arm, making him stop too "I thought you said we were going to use this link thing to _find_ her. How are we gonna do that if…"

"It's a double-edged sword Jade. I could use it, but that'll also mean she knows where _I_ am, and it might let her glimpse on our plan to get aboard that ship" He pushed me gently forward, and we fell back into step with each other.

"Do you even _have_ a plan?"

"Yes. That's partly the reason I'm going to the holographics room"

"The what?"

"Holograms. You know, like…"

"Like in Star Trek. Yay" I mumbled. He just laughed at me.

"I didn't tell you about it earlier because it's in a place that no-one but my highest officers know of. Plus, it's fun to have a few secrets lying around, don't you think?"

I punched him playfully on the shoulder, listening as he laughed again. He led me to a door I knew I'd been before.

"Isn't this…"

"Yep"

"You hid it in here?! Man, you're good"

"No, just sneaky" he said, then pressed the panel to open the door to the conference room. Of all the places…

Before I knew it, the conference table and chairs were gone, and in its place was a miniature of something that looked like the hallways we'd just been in. Only with a lot more turns. And something else that I couldn't quite put my finger on…

"As you see, there's a lot more to plan before we can get close to our goal" He said, and I finally realised… well, guessed… what it was.

"It's the inside of that ship! Or… at least… a small part of it. The hallways… but how…"

"Inaad's Yeerk was careless. As I said before, our link goes both ways. The Yeerk controlling her forgot to shut her mind from me when she was reaching out to find me. Or… about us…"

"Do you think Inaad could have…"

"No. She knows what I'm like, and she knows I'm going to come after her, even if it means my death. She won't let that happen. The Yeerk… I think he or she was speaking out of their own faults when they mentioned that our link made Inaad weak. No. Inaad has always been the stronger one of both of us, even though she'd never admit it…" Ithiell stopped then, and he hung his head a little as he fought back the tears that threatened to fall. I went over and put an arm around him, rubbing his back gently in a supporting way. It seemed to make it worse.

"That's… the only thing I don't like about being human. It's… harder to control my tear ducts…" he sniffled, trying to wipe away the tears with the back of his hand.

"Yeah. Sucks, doesn't it?" I smiled up at him, and he let out a weak laugh.

"Jade… you used to remind me so much of Inaad when I first met you that… for a while I didn't mind not knowing if… but now… she was so close, and I never…"

"She knows you love her. No matter what happened in the past, and no matter what _will_ happen, ok? After all, I'm one of four Ithiell. I'd know what I'm talking about"

He nodded, taking deep breaths to control himself. Soon, he seemed strong again, and I moved away.

"You're right Jade. So… I might as well give you a little snippet at what we _might_ be planning to do" He used the computer and his own words to show me a part of what he wanted to do. It seemed absolutely insane, but then again… as Marco would say, we all ate insane for breakfast.

"Okay, but how do we get back _out_?"

"Well… that's the part we're still working on. Ax has really been a big help in this. Without his support, I'd have never gotten the plan this far"

"That's good" we mulled over the little table-sized hologram for a little longer, before leaving the conference room the way it used to be; with a table and chairs.

_**------------------------------x----------------------------**_

Bits and pieces of a very intricately woven plan were put into place, until it almost seemed solid. Then again, even solid plans could go horribly wrong. So, with the rest of our team and the Animorphs help, we managed to make a plan B and C. Amanda even highlighted a very sketchy plan D. But then again, we'd only do that if we were _really_ desperate.

As usual, Rachel's attitude to the whole plan was 'let's do it!' and Marco's obvious response was 'this is insane'. Jake… well, Jake was shocked at the risk Ithiell planned to take for just one person. But Jake had underestimated Ithiell. Ithiell knew, if this abomination and her ship were ever to reach the Chanaiben home world, the invasion would begin again and everything would be lost. Everything the Animorphs fought for… everything each of them lost…would have been for nothing. And our last fight with the Terinans on the Chanaiben home world would have been for nothing too.

In fact, any planet that tried to tango with that ship would not last five minutes with it. Unless… it was another Runchak ship. And we didn't exactly have one of them lying around anywhere. Too bad though. But at least we were out of their space… and out of danger. At least for now.

There's that saying; the calm before the storm. Well, that was going to become more true now than when it was first said. For the time for us to 'do it' was about to be thrust on us like a tidal wave breaking over a beach.

I was in my quarters, with Marco asleep beside me. His face was so sweet, so content… I couldn't bring myself to wake him. So I got up and got changed into jeans and a top, leaving him there to sleep and probably dream sweet dreams. I slowly made my way up to the bridge, stretching as I went, and found only Ithiell there, asleep in the captain's chair, with his crew members working admirably. Ovatt was even there (Ithiell had given him a reprimand for his behaviour, but still let him work) and he swivelled his stalk eyes my way as he entered. He smiled at me with his stalk eyes.

(Good day Jade) he said privately so he wouldn't wake Ithiell up (I hope you have slept well?)

I went over to him, standing beside him and talking in a low voice.

"Yeah, I did. How are you and Kayleese?"

(Well. Kayleese is still a little… but now, she is fine) he looked at me with his main eyes now, smiling proudly. But then again, he had a reason to. Kayleese was going to have another baby, and this time he had guarded her like she was a porcelain doll. Thankfully, this time nothing happened to her, and her baby was due in the next few weeks. She was still a little upset about her first baby… then again, who wouldn't… but with the help of a wonderful husband like Ovatt, I knew she'd be ok.

"Good to hear Ovatt. So… your scanners picking up anything?"

He sighed (Besides readings from the _Aerionna _and the _TailBlade_, there is nothing out there besides stars and planets)

"Do we even know if we're going the right way?"

(Prince Ithiell believes they came this way, and I trust him, but…)

"I know Ovatt. Don't worry, I know we'll find them" I said patting his shoulder, then going over to Ithiell (still in his human form) and gently shook him awake.

"Whoa-huh?"

"Come on bud, you need some wake up juice"

"But I…"

"Hey Ovatt! Think you can alert us if there's trouble?"

(Yes, I can do this)

"Ithiell, what do you say?"

"Uhh…all right. I need a wakeup call anyway"

We made our way to the cafeteria, where he had a strong black coffee and I had a herbal tea. I took his mind off the mission, and instead made up some lame jokes (I swear, I've been around Marco too long) and basically avoided talk of the 'past battles' and family. It seemed to make him forget, at least for a while.

But when we were just getting up from the table, the lights turned yellow.

"All senior officers to the bridge. Emergency! Yellow alert!!" Came a voice I recognised as Keeras. Ithiell and I took one look at each other, and in seconds we were leaping over and darting around the tables to get to the door. When we got to the bridge everyone but Marco and Amanda were there.

"What is it? What's going on??" Tobias asked, looking panicked.

"We've spotted the ship, yet… we were lucky enough to warn the others to cloak, and we did as well, before it detected us" Keera explained as Genge made his way onto the bridge, and Ithiell took his place beside the two. Amanda came just after, looking like she'd just woken up. All of her blond shoulder-length hair was over onto one side. It would have almost been funny if I didn't know we weren't facing our enemy so soon.

"Good. You did the right thing. Now… we just have to find a position and angle to attack from. Through coded transmissions inform the _Aerionna_ and the _TailBlade_ to follow the ship closely, but not to close to be discovered" His orders were carried out, and although I couldn't see the other two ships, I knew they were doing exactly what they'd been told.

Marco appeared beside us seconds later, looking grim. He knew, this was it. We all did.

"Let's do it!" Rachel cried, pumping a fist in the air, her blue eyes ablaze.

"I'm with her" Robert smiled, jabbing a thumb in her direction.

"Did the two of you get separated at birth or something?" Marco asked rolling his eyes at them. They looked at each other and both laughed.

"Okay Ithiell" Jake interrupted their crazy laugh moment and dragged us back to what we were about to do "It's time we put this idea of yours to work"

"Yeah, I believe it is" Ithiell replied, nodding his head and looking at each of us, along with his bridge crew.

"If any of you want out of this now, say so" None of us (or them) did.

"All right then. Six minutes, then we go"

Fifteen minutes later, thirteen of us were huddled in both the small docking ship and a fighter, cloaked, waiting for the final assault to begin.

**Just a quick (and probably annoying) question. Do any of you like any of my characters? If so, who do you like the most? If you don't know, or don't want to answer, that's fine. Just keep reading and reviewing, and I'll keep updating. Deal? Good, now go and run away! Hehehehe!**


	21. Into certain danger!

Once again we were given a Jara gun each, and a high-tech earpiece with the little microphone attached. With this, we could contact and keep in touch with the fighter without the other ship knowing. Or so Ithiell said.

"Tobias? Keera? Can you hear me?" Ithiell asked tapping the earpiece.

"Yeah we can. Are you sure about…"

"We're more than sure" Jake replied.

"Okay. But I have to warn you, it's been a few years since I've actually _played_ video games. I might be a little rusty" Tobias said, sounding a little unsure of himself.

"Tobias, if _I_ can do it, _you_ can do it" I replied.

"Right, but you weren't trapped as a bird for…"

"Can we complain later? We've got to _focus_ here" Robert interrupted, looking up at the screen. He was standing beside Asen, who was once again at the controls of the small craft. We were off to the side, and waiting until Ithiell and Ax gave the orders for the three ships to attack. They'd been instructed to get into three separate positions for the attack. The first part of the plan was a full-frontal assault by the three ships, and when the shields went down, we would move in and attach ourselves to the ship. The rest would depend on what kind of monsters were hiding in that ship, and how the first part of the plan worked. Hopefully, it would go as planned.

"Okay, Ax?" Ithiell looked over at Ax.

(Yes?)

"Give your crew three minutes to get into position, and then tell them to fire with everything they have. I'll tell my crew and Lowri's"

(Very well) they both contacted the ships using coded transmissions. Finally, all we had to do now was wait. I felt a cold shiver run through me, but I knew it was just pre-battle tension, and shook it off. Cassie and Jake were discretely holding hands, and Amanda briefly hugged Ithiell from behind, before moving to stand beside him. Rachel was just smiling a little, and I caught a simular look from Robert, only more distant. I couldn't see Asen's face, but I knew he was scared as well. After all, he was only a little older than us. War hadn't touched him in the way it had touched us, at least not yet.

Ax and Rtaia were sharing a few silent looks, and Ax's hand was on her shoulder. He must have said something to her, because she replied,

"I know, dear heart"

I smiled at them, hoping against hope this fight wasn't all for nothing now. If they lived… they could bring two entirely different races closer together, and maybe a more if they…

I felt a hand slip into mine, and fingers entwined with my own. I turned to look straight into Marco's eyes. Serious, determined eyes.

"When this is over, we'll go home, and… and I want to marry you"

For a moment my heart froze up, but then I nodded, smiling.

"Sounds good"

"There they go!" Asen cried, and we all looked up at the screen as the three ships revealed themselves, and began to fire, catching Inaad's ship off-guard. It rocked violently, and then I saw the shields go up. Now, the ship was firing back. It barely missed hitting Lowri's ship, but they managed to dodge it.

The repercussions of each hit rocked us and Asen and Keera fought the waves, staying as close as possible. I felt Marco's grip tighten, and I returned the pressure in assurance.

Then something exploded in the giant mase-looking ship, and the force sent us all reeling back. We were all sent spinning around in the docking ship. I hit the side wall, with Jake and Amanda beside me, and we all fell into a pile on the floor. Asen had barely stayed on his feet, and as we all got up I saw him frantically working at the controls.

"Some of the systems are damaged! We have to drop the cloak if we're going to…"

"Five seconds, then drop it" Ithiell instructed. He somehow managed to get to the controls too, still human, and was working side-by-side with Asen. Ax and Rtaia soon joined them, looking over their shoulders.

"Try this" Rtaia leaned over Asen and her fingers darted over the controls for a few seconds. It seemed to help, but the whole time this was going on, the three ships were still firing madly at the mase thing.

"Sir, Genge here. Their shields are almost down. I suggest you begin to move in now" We heard coming through our earpieces.

"Good, going in. Keera, you stay with us, and Tobias…"

"I know, I know. If something looks like it's coming at you guys, fire at them"

"Uh-huh" Ithiell said as we began our move in. I felt tense, watching as we moved slowly closer to the giant ship, with the fighter right behind us. If we were lucky… _extremely_ lucky… they wouldn't notice us until it was too late.

"Sir, I found a place to dock. From my readings, it's like a cargo bay of some sorts…"

"Let's go in then. And everyone? Good luck"

(There is nothing good about this) Ax muttered.

"Optimism Ax-man. Have faith" Marco said.

I could see Ax was looking at him funny, but by then it was too late to say anything to that. We were there, with the docking clamps in place and the cutters getting to work, grinding into the thick metal of the hull. The ship tried to pull away from us then, and nearly shook us loose, but Asen maintained control of the small ship, working hard to keep us next to it. It was only then that I realised they weren't trying to get away from us; they were trying to manoeuvre away from the attacking ships.

"Okay, we're locked on. Pressurising… and opening the doors…"

"Everyone, get into positions!" Ithiell yelled. We ran to the hatch and Ax and Rtaia took up the front, holding their weapons out to the opening doors. We all stepped through into the middle room… carefully… and then into the large ship itself. It was fairly dark, with only a few small orange lights on the ceiling, but other than that it was quiet. Bits and pieces were stacked everywhere, some boxes I saw looking trapezium shaped, but there was still enough room to move between them. Two body lengths, at least.

It struck me as strange that no-one had noticed or heard the grinders cutting their way through, but then…

"Look out!" Robert yelled, and in seconds I was on the ground, the wind knocked out of me, with Robert landing above me on his hands and knees. Past him, I saw my friends taking cover and firing their Jara guns. I saw red streaks of light go past Jake, and another nearly get Asen who had just joined us, but they were too fast. Robert got up, yanking me up with him. We took a position behind a stack of metal cases of something as whatever it was fired at us again.

"What are they?! What's firing at us?!" Cassie yelled in absolute terror.

"Whatever the hell works on this ship, that's what?!" Marco yelled back.

"Runchak! It's got to be!" Rtaia yelled as she leaned out from whatever she was hiding behind, and taking a few shots, before being nearly missed by more laser fire.

"Okay, all at once we lean out and fire. On my command… fire!" We all did as Jake said, firing all out weapons at once into the near-darkness, watching as some hit and missed, and a terrible shrieking come from whatever it was that we'd hit. Then, there was nothing. No laser fire or… anything.

"Ithiell?" Jake enquired.

"I'll go first. Just keep everyone back" Ithiell replied, and I saw him moving in the darkness… slowly, and carefully… towards where the things were. Seconds later my new headset crackled to life.

"It's all right guys. We got them all" Ithiell said, and we stepped out to join him. It was only then that I saw what we'd fired on. They were so hideous… I bit back a terrified gasp.

The eyes of these things had no eyelids, so their blood red eyes stared up at us. The top part of their faces were like a sideways oval, and the bottom half was shaped more like a trapezium. The mouth… the mouth had sharp, gruesome looking teeth. Two of their teeth looked more like giant vampire fangs.

The body itself was covered in coarse black hair… or fur, and the legs had no feet, just stumps were feet would be. The legs were almost like a Terinans; the knee joints reversed, only they were much longer and thicker than a Terinans. The hands were crab-like, and came to sharp, jagged-pincered ends. The tails (yes, each had two tails) looked more like someone had just attached two giant snakes to their spines.

"Well, there's an ugly-looking mug if I ever did see one" Robert commented.

"That's at least… I dunno, eight feet tall!" Amanda cried.

"Well, it might be if it was standing up" Asen said.

"Runchak?" I wondered.

"Must be. Come on, let's go. I don't want to have those ships out there fighting any longer than they have to" Ithiell said, stepping over the charred bodies and towards a giant door we had all just noticed. Ithiell began working at the panel beside it, with Ax helping him.

"He's right of course. Let's just do what we came here to do and leave" Jake said, looking around. He was tense, I saw. Then again, we all were.

"Okay, we'll open this door when everyone's out of sight. You all know where to go, don't you?"

"Yes, we know! Now can we get a move on??" Rachel asked.

"All right. Positions!"

(I have set the doors to open after a ten second delay) Ax said as he and Ithiell came and hid with us. Ten seconds later, the doors opened into chaos. There were dozens of these big furry things running back and forth, and when a few noticed the door was now open…

"_TIILLLII TILLII!_"

"_HaaaHAKAKAKAKA!!!_" They screeched, and in seconds more had flooded the room. Fifteen at least.

"FIRE!!!" Ithiell roared, and in seconds half of these monstrous things were downed and the others screaming in terror. Others in the hallway and every one of them seemed to scatter. Soon, we were looking into an empty hallway. Ax, Ithiell and Rtaia stepped out of the shadows first, all of them peeping out the corridor.

"All clear" Rtaia said, and we all went to stand beside them. I moved up next to Ax, looking left and right, and realising there were three hallways. One was almost right in front of us, and the other two went left and right.

"Well, this looks fun" Rachel said rolling her eyes.

"Well, we planned to split up into three groups anyway" Cassie said from beside me.

"Uh-huh" I muttered.

"Whatever we're doing, we have to hurry. There might be more of those things… or something worse on the way" Jake pointed out.

"Hey guys, how's it going?" I heard Tobias ask through my earpiece.

"Great. We're already in trouble" Marco muttered.

"Uh, I don't know if you know this Marco, but you were in trouble the moment you stepped on board that thing"

"This is insane" Marco muttered, ignoring Tobias's comment.

"Whatever. Are you guys ok?"

"All right. We're as well as we can be"

"Enough talk Tobias. We can't afford to waste any more time" Ithiell said, glaring out at the hallways.

"Ithiell's right. Three groups still. So let's go!"

"Asen, you know what to do, don't you?"

"Yes sir. Hopefully I'll find…"

"Yes, now let's go!" We split up. Asen, Rachel, Ax and Jake went left in hallway. Rtaia, Cassie, Amanda and Marco went straight ahead. Ithiell, Robert and I took the right. We ran, the hallways almost empty except for a single alien every now and then. They were big, but apparently not that bright, and not that fast either.

Finally, we came to one thing I thought I'd never see in an alien vessel this far out in space.

"A dropshaft?" Robert raised an eyebrow.

"Apparently so"

"Yeerk technology, you can bet on it" Ithiell said, then smiled a little.

"What?"

"This could be exactly what we're looking for"

"So, does it work like the Yeerk vessels?"

"Probably. In any case, I'm guessing we'll need to stop at a certain floor and go from there to the bridge"

"Ithiell? Are you ready for this?"

"I've been ready for six months Jade"

"Okay then, lets…"

"Let's do it!" Robert said, imitating Rachel. Seconds later I heard,

"Hey, that's _my_ line!"

"Sorry. Get into position and we'll see you later"

"Whatever"

Ithiell stepped forward and into the dropshaft, and in seconds he was blown upward. I went next, then Robert.

_Bridge_, I thought, focusing my mind on getting to that floor. In seconds, it felt like something pulling me upwards and in seconds I was deposited on a certain floor, beside Ithiell, who had his Jara gun levelled and ready.

"No one here yet" he said as I moved aside, just before Robert joined us. We were now facing a single hallway, leading straight to giant closed double doors at the other end. Seconds later, my earpiece came to life again.

"All right, we found it and we're in position" Jake said.

"As are we" Rtaia added.

"We had a little trouble with those giant things, but it's all right now" Marco informed us.

"Great. Well, we're here. Now it's just getting in there" Ithiell sighed, lowering his weapon.

"You can do this Ithiell. I believe in you" Amanda's words seemed to help him. He smiled.

"Yeah, I know. But all of you be careful, ok? Something about all this feels wrong"

"I got the same feeling" Marco muttered.

Then there was nothing as the three of us made our way slowly to the big double doors, Jara guns levelled, eyes locked on those doors. But then my mind did a double take, and I began to look around, then back at the dropshaft. And what I saw did _not_ make me feel very confident.

**Review now people, or you don't get da rest of the story, ok? Constructive criticism appreciated. Also people saying 'hey, I lurve it!' The more reviews, the more chappies you get. **

**Also to LittleMidgett; yay! You're back! My muse has returned (I haven't been able to write until i read your chappies) hehehehe! Okay, byz! I'm off to write da next chappie!**


	22. Retaliation

**I made a mistake! Well, lots of mistakes… I put that they were in Runchak space… but in fact they were actually in Bendis space… and the ship they're on, and the creatures… they're the Bendis, ok? (duh, silly me) But just so you know, ok… I'll be calling them Bendis thingys from now on…**

**Okay, this chapter will have to be from Ithiell's pov, ok? It'll be easier that way… enjoy…**

**Ithiell**

"Hit the deck!" Jade yelled, knocking me down before I even had a chance to turn around and see what she was looking at. Seconds later, laser lights streaked above our heads.

"What the…?"

"Hunter robots! And they're not alone!!" Jade pulled me up and shoved me against the wall, before firing her weapon, and I finally saw what she was looking at. Several hunter robots, and behind them… at least a dozen of these Bendis creatures. But… something was wrong. They were, at least, twelve feet tall! Their ceiling was only inches above their heads.

The hunter robots fired again, and the three of us dodged it. I hit the floor, rolled, and jumped up on shaky human legs. If I was Chanaiben, I would have been faster… but for now… I'd just have to deal with it.

Robert and Jade fired at the same time, and two of the hunter robots exploded. Behind them, the Bendis were not moving. In fact… they were smiling. That's when I realised they seemed to be treating this like a side-show. But… the Bendis we ran across before… the smaller ones… seemed to be dim-witted and…

Tsssssseeeewwwww!!! Laser fire came inches from my ear. I ducked, and fired, aiming just right. The hunter robot I'd been aiming for exploded, bits of debris hitting and destroying the two that were just to the right of it. But there were still at least five more!

Three shot by us! Past and towards the two doors, then came back and began shooting from that side as well.

"Robert! Jade! Take that side! I'll deal with these three" I said ducking and rolling again, before aiming and firing. My shot went a little wild, but I had planned it that way. It hit two of the robots before my gun ran out of charge. I'd have to wait five seconds before I could hit the third. I waited as it hovered there, seeming to consider which angle to attack me from…

"Ahh!" Jade screamed, and I turned to see a hunter robot was right next to her head. If she moved, she'd be dead.

"How the…"

"I don't know" Robert snarled, aiming for it, but I think even he knew that if he fired while it was so close to her, the thing exploding would kill her too. It was a loose/loose situation.

"All right, that's enough fun. Hunter robots, return!" Came the voice, and as I watched, the two remaining robots made their way over to the Bendis, still standing in front of the dropshaft; our only means of escape.

"What… who said that?" I demanded. To my surprise, it was actually one of the Bendis who stepped forward and began to talk.

"You are not exactly one to be making demands, are you little human" it said… smiling at me, those wicked teeth making even me shudder at the sight.

"But… I thought you were… I thought you didn't talk!" Jade cried from beside me. Now, its face changed. It became… angry. To say the least.

"You must be referring to the children you have killed"

"Ch-children! Shit, those things were children!" Robert couldn't believe what he was hearing. In fact, neither could I. If those things were mere children… then what would that make these things? Surely not…

"Were they _your_ children?" I asked cautiously. They let out what could have been cruel laughter. It sounded like giant dogs barking.

"No, for we are not at an age to bear children of such age. We are… as you _humans_ would call…. teenagers"

I swear, I almost choked. I could tell my friends were having a simular reaction.

"I'd hate to meet the parents of these things" Robert muttered, and I sent him a sharp look. He shut up after that.

"Well… I apologise. We seem to have gotten off on the wrong… uh… foot here" I said, trying to make peace before these things attacked… as I knew they would… and rip us to shreds.

"There is no room for compromise here. Teh, Vim, show them what happens to ones who kill our brothers and sisters" it said, and two Bendis 'teenagers' stepped forward.

"Guys, get…" but I couldn't finish my warning, because before I knew it Jade was thrown across the room, hitting the double doors. Robert had been thrown against a wall, and the Bendis who had him had one of those gigantic arms across his throat, pressing hard and choking him.

Before I could react, I was down as well, and something was placed against my throat. One of their pincers! I felt it nick my skin and start to draw blood.

"You killed my sister Ban. You will pay" it seethed, pressing deeper. I was now finding it hard to breathe, and I knew more blood was beginning to seep from the small cut wounds.

_Shift!_ I screamed inside my own head. _Come on, shift!_

But by the time I had begun to focus, I could barely breathe. Finally, the jagged pincers sliced across my throat, and I felt my blood spilling faster. I heard someone scream, and the thing that was above me disappeared. On purpose or not, I couldn't tell. Everything was going fuzzy…

(Don't you _dare_ give up on us yet!) A female voice screamed (We've come this far… come on! Shift!)

Fuzzy still… I closed my eyes, and felt something trying to stop the blood. But… too late…

No, it wasn't! I saw an image of something… someone… in front of me… and I felt myself begin to change… almost unconsciously… into that other being. As I did, the fuzzy feeling began to clear, until I saw a giant cat's face in front of me, and that was joined by a polar bear. They almost looked relieved.

(Oh thank god you're all right!) Jade cried as I got up… in my own body… and looked around. The two Bendis that had tried to attack us were down… their blood pooling on the floor. I almost felt sorry for them. For the one whose sister I had killed…

Then I looked up at the rest of the Bendis. They looked… scared, almost. I smiled at this. For I knew _why_ they were afraid. After all, it was a Chanaiben who led them…

"You… kill them! Kill the Chanaiben mongrels!" the first one screamed, in both terror and anger.

"Back up, and be ready to…" I started to say, but at that moment the double doors behind us opened, and a single figure stepped out. They backed off immediately. I just stared. I couldn't believe it! After all this time… and now she was so close…

"Don't kill them. Not just yet. I want to have a little _fun_ with them first…"

But the moment she said that… I knew it wasn't her. It was the abomination… and I knew, no matter what happened, the Yeerk in my sister's head _must_ die.

_**--------------------------------x---------------------**_

**Amanda**

I stood beside Rtaia at the computer console, fighting back a yawn. Seconds later, I lost.

"Amanda!" Cassie hissed.

"Sorry" I muttered, then went to stand beside Marco the gorilla at the door. He'd said he'd rather have some real firepower when it came to fighting whatever else was on this ship. None of us objected. Besides, we probably knew he'd do it anyway. Men… always wanting to fight with brute force…

"I have been successful in decrypting the security codes. I am now accessing the computer database in order to…"

(No wonder Ax married you; you talk just like him!) Marco said to Rtaia, shaking his big gorilla head. Rtaia looked a bit sore at him, but she continued to do what she had to do, working through the systems until she found what she had to. All of a sudden, in my headset I heard Jade yell 'hit the deck!' and we all tensed up.

We listened to what they were saying, and doing, until all three of their microphones stopped working, and all we heard was static.

"Oh my god…" I whispered. Beside me, Marco had tensed up.

(Jade… oh god are they…)

"No. Remember, they can all shape-shift. And none of them will give up without a sure fight" Rtaia said from where she was working. But I knew she was right. I'd just have to trust that the three of them would be ok. My boyfriend…. my best friend… and Robert, a boy who had become like another brother to me. They were all strong, all in their own ways. They could do it. They _had_ to.

"I know they can do it" I said sounding more confident than I felt. Beside me, Marco nodded, and Cassie smiled at us in reassurance. I went back over to Rtaia and Cassie, looking over Rtaia's shoulder. All I saw was some strange writing, so I decided to just let Rtaia handle it. Then, my earpiece crackled to life.

"Guys, did you heard that?" Jake asked us.

"What do _you_ think?" I muttered, realising I must've sounded just like Robert when I said that.

"Yeah, well, we're all set up here. Just wait for us… we'll come to you, and then all of us can go up and rescue those three when we're done"

"No, I think the four of you should go up now" Rtaia's tone was intense.

"What? Why?" Rachel asked.

"If they are in real danger, they might need help sooner than we think. And I may still be a while here… I still need to find the right system to plant the virus in" Rtaia said.

(Perhaps I could come and assist you) Ax suggested.

"No. If it is as bad as I think it is, you will need all of you. Especially you, dear heart"

"As much as I hate to admit it Ax, she's right. Let's go!" Jake said.

"We'll keep in touch. Don't worry" Asen added, and I heard Rachel mutter something, but I didn't quite pick it up. Mostly because there was now something pounding on the closed door where Marco was. He jumped back, demorphing almost unconsciously. Then he realised what he was doing and reversed it.

(Guys? Whatever's doing this… I might need some help to stop it)

"How much longer until you can get that virus in?" Cassie asked Rtaia, looking from her to the door, then back to her again.

"Three minutes, maximum" Rtaia replied, and I could tell she was speeding up. Her fingers were moving faster now.

"Looks like we'll have to hold them off until then" I said, and I saw Cassie was already morphing.

"No!"

"Whhrroaak?" She was already more wolf than human.

"Think big! Think… elephant!" I said, already growing. My ears exploded from the sides of my head, and my upper lip and nose melted together, beginning to stretch out. I moved away from the computer console, to the centre of the room. I was glad now that it was such a big room.

(As much as I hate to admit it, she's right. Whatever's on the other side of that door is too-) At that moment he lost his ability to thought-speak, already shrinking back to his human self.

"All right" Cassie was now human again, moving beside me and starting to morph again. Already I was about three times bigger than I had been, and I managed to take the earpiece off my face with my still-forming trunk before I broke it. I knew I was going to need it later. Marco was now on the other side of me, morphing to rhino. When we were all big and dangerous, Marco said,

(All right. We try to hold that door as long as possible, and if they manage to break through before Rtaia's finished, then we'll have to fight them off, all right)

(Right) Cassie and I replied in unison. We went towards the door, guiding Marco there, and pressed all of the weight we could against it. After all, it was smaller than all of us together. Our heads just fit against the door. Immediately I felt the pounding of the thing that was on the other side. Or things, I couldn't be sure.

All I knew was we were all now in it deep, and there was a chance we could now all die…

**Okay, that's all for now, but I promise I'll try to have another chappie up before the week is over. That damn writers block is starting to creep in again (so frustrating!)**

**LittleMidgett; sure, I'll help in any way I can. You left it at the Rachel popping up again, well… it could be the speedy things on it, or the Ellimist and Crayak playing with them again… or time went wonky, and there are now two of everyone…**

**I don't know. I ran out of ideas. Hope I helped though… BYZ!!**


	23. All in trouble

**galaxytree; thankyou! I'm glad you like it so much! **

**LittleMidgett; yeah, i did. Nasty, aren't i?**

**Ithiell**

We were lead onto the bridge, that looked strangely like a larger version of the bridge on my ship. Inaad… or the Yeerk in her head… took a seat as the Bendis guards hustled us into the room, shutting the door. A tiger and a polar bear stood on either side of me, in front of the being that called herself my sister.

"So brother, long time no see" She smiled an evil grin as the Bendis guards surrounded us.

"Who are you?"

"I am Inaad of the…"

"No. Who are you, _Yeerk_"

"I am Istan three-five-nine. Does that make you feel better, Chanaiben mongrel? To know what I truly am?"

"I know what you are. And I know that no matter what, by the time I leave here you'll be dead. That slug body of yours crushed beneath my feet"

She laughed. It wasn't a nice sound, especially when it was coming from my sister's body. My sister never laughed like that.

"You think you're coming out of this _alive_?" She laughed again, and I felt her subtly probing my mind, trying to read my thoughts and secrets. I shut her out. Blocked with all my strength.

"I don't think, I _know_"

"What wild fantasies this little Chanaiben mongrel has thought up! How intuitive!"

"Istan, you will be dead before I let you use my sisters' body… and mind… any more. Don't doubt that" I kept my gaze levelled at my twins face, all the while knowing what evil was controlling her every movement. Where her eyes looked… what her hands touched… it was sickening.

She looked at me with those beautiful eyes of my sisters and I saw her mouth twitch. Good, she was worried. She knew what my sister knew about me.

When we were little, I used to go exploring a lot. I was curious about living things, as well as how this and that worked. I explored the inside of more than one ship on the home world. And if I wanted to go somewhere… and I told Inaad about it… she knew there was no stopping me. I guess you could say that was partly the reason I ended up on earth ten years ago.

Isten knew that now too… reading my sisters mind.

But then… she turned her eyes towards the polar bear standing beside me, smiling that sick smile of hers.

"Why don't the two of you earth animals become yourselves again?"

"Whatever she tells you, don't do it. No matter what" I told Jade and Robert, and I caught a dangerous look from Isten.

"Don't defy me little Chanaiben mongrel, or you will be the first to die"

"Kill me then. But by your own hand"

"WHAT?!!" She stood up, furious, and stepped towards me until she was no more than a foot from my face. I hardly flinched.

"Go on. I'd like to see you do it. Unless… you're scared of what that might do to your host… you could loose, say… _complete_ control of her" I smiled, and she screamed at me.

"_Shut up you insolent fool_!"

"Not until I see you kill me"

"FINE!!" In seconds, her hands were on my throat, choking me.

"NO!! _Unimm!!_" The pressure was gone instantly, and as I watched, I saw Inaad fighting for control. And she was winning. The hands were removed from my neck, and her whole body was shaking.

"I'll kill him!!" Isten.

"I won't let you!" Inaad.

"You can't fight me Inaad!!"

"Watch me you _calhea_!!"

She fought with Isten, but I could tell… Isten was starting to win. I had to hold myself back from just grabbing my sisters' form and giving her my physical strength. But… no matter how much I wanted it… I knew I couldn't help her this time. This was her fight.

(Is she… what's going… can she win this?) Jade's voice was broken.

(She'll have to) Robert replied.

"My sister will die free, no matter what" I said loudly enough for all to hear.

(Ithiell…) Jade began, but by then Isten regained control of my sister, who smiled and turned away from me, then returned to her chair.

"Nice little trick Ithiell. But not good enough"

"My sister will never give in. And I'll never let her"

"Your sister's strength is gone now. She can't fight me anymore"

"She can, and she will"

"That's what you think"

I smiled at her, staring straight into the whitish-grey eyes that had once held so much joy and innocence. _Just you see Yeerk, my sister is much stronger than you think she is…_

_**-------------------------------x-----------------------------**_

**Jake**

We ran through the hallways, with Ax and Asen leading us. Asen checked the thing in his hands.

"All right, we take this corridor, and then two lefts before we reach the dropshaft" He said.

"How do we know they're not already dead, and…"

"They're not Rachel. Not with Ithiell leading them"

(And not with Robert's aggressive nature) Ax added.

"Look out! Bendis!" Asen suddenly cried, and in an instant there were three in the hallway in front of us. Rachel, Ax and I fired and in seconds they were just more bodies on the floor.

"What about Amanda and the others? They're in trouble too" Rachel asked.

"They can handle it, now would you just hurry!" I yelled, yanking her forward. She gave me death looks, but I ignored her. We turned left, then left again…

"Back up!" Asen yelled, shoving me backward. In seconds there was what looked like Dracon fire shoot past us. We took cover at the corner.

(Hunter robots!) Ax cried as he joined us (I counted at least ten)

"Ten?! No way! How are we supposed to…"

"Rachel? I trained with you. I know you can do it" Asen said, giving her a smile of encouragement. She returned the smile and nodded.

"Let's do it"

"Now there's my crazy cousin" I said smiling wryly.

"Hey, who you calling crazy?"

"Three coming in for the kill!" Asen reported as he stuck his head out cautiously, then back behind the wall we were leaning on.

"Level your weapons, and as soon as you see them, fire" I instructed. We all did, and as soon as they turned the corner, looking for us… we turned them into debris. Someone's shot went wild and cut a neat gash in the wall across from us.

"Hunter robots, return!" Boomed the voice.

"What the…" I clamped a hand over her mouth, and put a finger to my own lips, telling her to be quiet.

"Come out little Chanaibens. We won't hurt you" the voice mocked.

(Prince Jake, I believe Asen and I might be…) I nodded, mouthing the words 'be careful' to them. They stepped out into view, guns levelled. Then I saw them look up. And I mean _up_. It looked like they were looking up at the roof.

(These Bendis are certainly not the ones from before) Ax said privately to me (Their heads are only inches from touching the ceiling above them. And they do seem smarter than…)

"Ah, so the Chanaiben brings his little Andalite _pet_ with him"

"How do you know about Andalites?" Asen asked.

"We are lead by one who knows all. The great one"

We were all silent for a moment. I then realised they must be talking about Inaad. At that moment, Rachel had the same idea, and mouthed a single word to me. I nodded, looking at Asen and Ax. I looked at Ax, searching for the answer in his eyes. Good thing he knew what I wanted to know.

(I count seven Prince Jake)

"Okay then" I said softly "Set your guns on the highest setting, cause this is going to get ugly"

**A/N; This is a question you _must_ answer. I'm also giving you a chance to choose which way this story goes. Should Inaad be saved, or die when they try to save her? You choose… **


	24. Break me, shake me

**Everyone! I need your help! I'm running out of ways to do this!!!!!!**

**Amanda**

The Bendis thingys had broken through the door, but we had fought them… all ten of them… and turned them into bodies on the floor. They hardly put up a fight. Thankfully by then Rtaia had set up the virus in one of their main systems.

We all returned to normal, and I retrieved my headset thingy from the floor. It was a little bent out of shape, but thankfully I managed to fix it. I put it back on my head as Cassie frowned and looked down at her own broken headset. She'd forgotten to remove it before it splintered into three separate pieces. Marco had given his to Rtaia before he started to become a rhino. Good thinking.

"I have heard a battle raging" Rtaia said as she turned back to us. Her look was bleak.

"What? Where?" I asked.

"Our other friends caught up with things much bigger than the ones you have just defeated, and had to give it everything they had. But… thankfully… they all survived" Rtaia said. While she said this I saw her and Cassie seemed to loose about three shades of skin colour.

"All right. Let's go help the others" Marco said, shaking us all out of our hazes. He was right too. I needed to know if they were still all right. And Ithiell…

I turned around, taking one more look at the room, before beginning to move towards the door…

"Look out!" Cassie suddenly screamed, and in seconds I was thrown across the room. I hit a wall, pain screaming up every inch of my body, before I fell to the ground, only partly conscious. I fought to get up, fading out a couple of times, before I saw a gorilla and a wolf fighting a gigantic Bendis, almost as tall as the ceiling. Rtaia was with them, on all fours believe it or not, her speed seeming to be the only thing that could dodge the monstrous blows of this gigantic beast. I saw the thing swipe at Cassie, connecting with her flank, and she went flying across the room, behind what looked like a stack of electrical equipment. I got up slowly, trying to concentrate on becoming something that could help. Something…

And then another came through the door. If it looked like they were having trouble with the one, two seemed to be able to do much more damage. It grabbed Marco by the throat, lifting him up off the ground. And then Cassie returned, all though not a wolf anymore. She charged and hit the offending Bendis from behind, and it let Marco go. I saw pinpricks of blood trickle down his neck and onto his big gorilla shoulders. The Bendis turned, grabbed Cassie by the tusks, and all of a sudden it turned into a wrestling match.

I had to help them! Had to focus!

(NO AMANDA!! GO HELP THE OTHERS!! THEY NEED YOU!!) Marco's scream rocked me. But then I understood. Jade and the others could be in the fight of their lives, and I needed to…

Then, I watched as Rtaia jumped on the back of the first Bendis, digging her claws in its back. It howled in pain, and Marco took that moment to tackle its legs. It went down, hard.

(GO NOW!!) Marco yelled, now more angry than desperate, and the moment he said that I was running. I ran out the door, then back the way we came. I ran, desperate to find that bridge. I encountered no other Bendis, but I did find the place where Jara guns had been fired. There was a nasty gash in a corner wall, and as I turned the corner I saw maybe eight Bendis bodies all sprawled on the floor. All looking like they had been shot. I saw bits of what looked like hunter robots as well. And something else… blood. Although it looked more like blue blood other than the acidy green blood of what I noticed to be the Bendis blood. Did Ax or Asen…

I kept running, knowing this plan was going horribly wrong, and if anyone died it would mean the end of the rest of us…

**Okay, here's where I ask for some serious help. I'm out of ideas here. I know how it's going to _end_, but not how to actually get there. Can anyone, at all, give me any ideas which would help???**

**I need you guys now… please help…**

**LittleMidgett: thanks for the idea, but i still don't know what to do about this damn writers block. Write more of yours and maybe i'll get inspired...**


	25. Coming together

**Okay, here's the rest! I had an EXPLOSIVE inspiration burst last night, so i really hope this doesn't dissapoint anyone!!!**

**LittleMidgett; yeah, I kinda noticed the Istan/Isten thing. Thanks for pointing it out to me through, I'll try to make sure not to do that again.**

**Jade**

I stood there, every muscle in my body tense, as I watched Istan and Ithiell battle it out, using words and mind games. Then I'd watched the heartbreaking moment when the real Inaad broke through, and I could see Ithiell had to will himself not to grab hold of her and never let go. But he'd held on, long enough for Istan to get control again.

And then, something even more surprising happened. The Bendis at the controls of one of the consoles turned and said,

"The four in passageway C-10 have advanced forwards. The three in at the computer console in section D-7 are still there, but one is now moving"

Beside me, Robert and Ithiell tensed up. I knew… in my heart I knew… he was talking about the others. Our friends. How did they…

"So, you've known all along that we were here" Ithiell said, his voice contradicting the concern on his face. Istan nodded.

"Yes. Quite interesting how you all split up though. Too bad your friends could not get past the security codes in our computers. Could have given you some valuable information about us" She said, and for a second I thought Ithiell was going to fall for the bait and blurt out something that might tell her what they were doing. Instead…

"Yes, too bad about that" he told her cooly, turning his 'game' face on. He folded his arms and stared at her. His face, and his actions, gave absolutely nothing away.

"The four in the hallways seem to be coming for you. They seemed to be in several parts of the ship for some time"

"So they were"

"Hmm. So I take it you're not going to reveal anything about your friends intentions?"

"I guess I'm not"

(Wow, ten out of ten for the acting abilities) Robert said privately to me.

(Yeah. Remember though, before he became a gung-ho captain he was a diplomat, and all diplomats have to stay cool under pressure. And if that means playing snide with the two sides…)

(Ah, I see. Interesting trait. Maybe I should have been a diplomat)

(Doubt it. You're better at game-play than anything else)

We both shut up as Istan, in Inaad's delicate but fast-moving body, moved over to a console beside a Bendis who was sitting.

"Hmm. This one that's all alone… they don't appear to be armed…"

I felt something well up in the pit of my stomach. My gut told me something was wrong. Okay, maybe it was a tigers gut, but I still had my own instincts, and they were screaming 'danger!' at me.

"You should know by now us Chanaibens do not have to be armed to be dangerous"

"Ah yes. Perhaps this certain person… whoever he or she is… would like some company" Again, that gut feeling zapped through my senses. Something was wrong. Something was _very _wrong…

(Is it just me, or did I hear Istan emphasise the word 'she'?) Robert asked me, and in an instant I think I knew who that lone person was.

(I… I didn't hear that… but… oh my god, Robert…)

(Yeah, I think I know who it is) I turned my big cat head to look straight at Ithiell. So, he guessed too. I saw a flicker of fear in his eyes, before the mask came down again. Good thing Istans back was turned while this happened.

"Whoever he or she _is_, they can certainly take whatever you throw at them" Ithiell said, still playing the part. His mask was still down, but I didn't know how much longer he'd be able to hold it.

"Good then. Oma, send twenty soldiers, all with hunter robots. That should be enough" then she turned to look at Ithiell, smiling sickly "Unless… you do not think that will be enough dear brother"

"Twenty will be fine" Ithiell replied smoothly, and I could tell his heart strings were being played now. He was facing his sister, and the enemy, who was about to kill Amanda; his heart and soul.

Then laser fire sounded, and the entire door of the bridge, both parts, blew open…

_**---------------------------------x------------------------------**_

**Jake**

"Ax! Ax, are you ok?" I said as he staggered a little, holding his side. A Bendis had gotten a lucky swipe in, getting him on the right side. Blue blood began to spill on the floor. But by then the Bendis was no more than a corpse on the floor, thanks to Rachel.

(It is… all right. I will morph off the wound)

"You sure you're all right?" Rachel asked as she and Asen helped him when he stumbled. I however, kept my gun levelled, swinging it this way and that, wanting to be ready for anything. Any more Bendis shock troops. These things made Hork-Bajir look tiny and tame.

We moved slowly along, as Ax morphed human, then returned to his most deadly form; himself. It had gotten ugly, and without Ax's tail and quick thinking, I would have been fish food. Once Andalite again, he seemed to pick up the pace a bit more. Soon, we were all running.

And…we reached a dropshaft.

"Ax?"

(I believe we must go 'up' Prince Jake)

"Don't call me Prince" I said automatically.

"So how do we get to the bridge? Did anyone bring a manual for this thing?"

"Simply think 'bridge' and you will end up on the floor you desire" Asen told us. Then he stepped into the dropshaft, and was swept upwards by a powerful current. I saw Rachel took a deep breath, before she too stepped into the shaft and shot upwards. I turned to Ax.

"Well, this is it. You ready?"

(Yes) I nodded at him, then stepped into the shaft, thought _bridge_, and in seconds I was standing beside Rachel and Asen, in a hallway. On the other end of that hallway were two doors. They looked thick, and heavy too. I doubted our most powerful morphs could do anything to that door. Ax stumbled into me, since I'd forgotten to move aside.

"This looks… very bad"

"Uh-huh" I muttered.

"So what now, oh fearless leader?" Rachel asked, turning to me.

"Honestly? I have no idea"

"Perhaps there is some sort of computer access" Asen queried. We looked for one was we walked towards it. That's when I noticed pieces of hunter robots up here.

"Must've been a battle" Rachel said frowning.

"Yeah, but who won?"

(From the looks of it, neither of them. There are only two bodies, although from the sounds of it there had been more Bendis. Yet… there are no bodies of our friends, so I am guessing…)

"Captured" I finished for him, knowing they had to be on the other side of the door. And if they weren't… well, maybe we would just have a look around in there anyway; maybe take control of the systems until we did find them.

"So how do we get in? I don't think my grizzly _or_ elephant is gonna cut it"

"Yeah. Ax? Asen?"

"Perhaps… we do still have our Jara guns, do we not?" Asen began, and then the second he said that Ax seemed to catch on.

(Maybe… there is a definite probability… that we could fire all our weapons at once, at a certain part of the door…, perhaps)

"Right in the middle"

Ax seemed surprised.

(I did not know you knew of…)

"Ithiell told us once, when you want to cause some real damage you hit right in the centre. I think that just might work here" Ax nodded at me.

(All right. Set your weapons on the highest setting, and I will guide your weapons to the weakest spot in the door) we all did, levelling our weapons at the door.

(Asen, a hair left. Jake, you need to move it down, and a little right… that's it. Rachel, an inch higher. There) Ax levelled his own Jara gun, taking his time and aiming as well.

"On my mark…. FIRE!!" I yelled, and we all let loose…

_**-------------------------------x-----------------------**_

**Amanda **

I reached a dropshaft as an explosion shook the ship. I knew it had to be from inside. I just hoped it meant we were winning. Or the others…

I was about to step into the dropshaft, then hesitated. If there was a fight going on, I wanted to be ready for it. I'd lost my Jara gun in the last fight. So, I concentrated on becoming a polar bear. White fur exploded from my skin, and I think I shifted faster than I ever had at that moment. In seconds, I was four hundred pounds of nasty polar bear. And for once, it felt extremely good. I stepped into the shaft, thought _bridge_, and in seconds I was in a hallway. On the other side of me was what looked like a door or something that had been blown open by force.

And inside… I heard animal cries and saw the deep blue of the Jara guns firing. So, I was right. I charged, straight towards the door, and when I got closer I could see what was happening. Or rather… what had just happened. Jade and Robert… a tiger and another polar bear… were standing in a mess of bodies on the floor. Jake, Rachel, Ax and Asen had taken cover behind what was left of one of the crumpled doors, and were firing at each and every Bendis on that bridge. Ithiell… oh god… Ithiell had a Chanaiben female… his sister, I think… in an arm lock. She was fighting with everything she had, but Ithiell had her from behind. He was also using her to shield himself from the advancing Bendis. They backed up, and when they did… one of the others would take them out. By the time I got there, almost every Bendis on that bridge was dead. But I ploughed into the madness anyway, going on a mad frenzy with what was left of the Bendis. Now, we were all alone on the bridge.

Or, at least… mostly.

"You fools! I have _thousands_ more followers on this ship! And…"

"And what? By the time they realise their 'one' is in trouble, you will no longer exist Yeerk" Rachel said, looking pretty cocky. She… the Chanaiben with the Yeerk inside her head… tried to escape Ithiell's grip, but he kept a firm hold, and ended up pinning her on the ground, practically sitting on her.

"She's right Istan. I promised you death, and I will not back down from that"

(I believe we may have a problem) Ax said. He had gone over to a computer console and was tapping furiously at the keys.

"What is it?" Jake asked. I realised Jade and Robert were back in their own bodies. So I shifted back too.

(There are… at least three dozen more Bendis on the way to the bridge. They will be here in approximately ten earth minutes)

"Ten minutes!! Oh man…" Robert looked at the remains of the door.

"If we can get those doors up… and maybe find something to wield them in place again… we may by a few more seconds before Rtaia, Cassie and Marco get here" Asen was at another console.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"I mean either way this goes, we'll have to fight our way back out"


	26. Inaad's freedom

**Jade**

Great. We were doomed. I guess I knew that from the beginning. I just… I didn't want to believe it, you know? Like… I wanted to believe we were like a _Rambo_ squadron. You know, like… go in, guns blazing, and somehow take out a gazillion guys and still survive. But that was only in movies. This was real.

Asen still had his gun, and he told us at just the right setting he should be able to seal the doors up again. So, Rachel, Robert, Amanda and I, as elephants, collected each piece of door and put it back in place. One didn't seem to fit anymore, but he said he could wield it anyway. Ax began to help, and he instructed Jake on how to do the same thing too. Soon, they were all working hard. Ithiell however… well, he was still holding Istan. Or… Inaad. She was screaming blue murder.

"You'll pay for this! You'll die, and when you do I'll feed you to my faithful followers!"

"No, you wont" Ithiell said calmly, sitting on her, pinning her arms and holding her tail and legs with his own tail.

"Ithiell! _Unimm!_ _Quena! Selemaar! Selamaan!_" Inaad broke through, startling us all. She was still fighting! Ithiell was right!

"_Unami_, I love you_ ceqin malanarp_, you will be free by the time this is over. Fight harder… drive her out… you can do it!"

"Ha HA!! She will loose!"

"I'll never give in! _Unimm_ is with me! He will help free me!"

"You will never be free you little…"

"Free or die!"

"You have no choice!"

It was like seeing (well, hearing since I was helping hold the door) split personalities. One good, one evil. It was… creepy.

(I have never seen a host resist their Yeerk for so long! Indeed Inaad is one to be honoured for her bravery) Ax said, his stalk eyes facing back towards them. Soon, both doors were in place. Although, the left door was slightly scrunched up and didn't fit by about five or six inches on the top. Still, it would help us hold them off for long enough. Long enough for what? I couldn't be sure.

"Hey, something's just occurred to me" Rachel said when we were all human again.

"What?" I asked.

"Maybe the reason why Inaad can break through so easily… maybe she's at the end of her feeding cycle"

"Doubt it" Ithiell said, and under him Istan laughed madly.

"You little fools! Don't you know?! This is _my_ ship!! I can feed whenever I wish!! Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha!!!!"

"Great. Well, that helps" Robert muttered.

"No. I believe… I believe she may still be able to get rid of the foul creature from her body" Ithiell said, the distaste in his voice notable.

"I think… I think I know what you're getting at" Amanda said excitedly, and beside her Jake and Ax seemed to agree. I had no idea what they meant.

"Shift" Robert said, and it all came to me like someone had flicked a light switch on in my head.

"Ha! What good that will…" Istan hesitated, and I think she was reading Inaad's mind. And she seemed afraid.

"Yes Yeerk. I see you understand what I am talking about" Ithiell smiled now, knowing, and Istan let out what sounded like a hissing sound.

"She will never take control for long enough! NEVER!!"

"Watch me!" Inaad broke through again. And then, she began to shift.

_**----------------------------x-------------------------**_

**Inaad**

My name is Inaad of the _Nibrit_ clan. And for nearly ten years I had been a slave of the foul creature that called herself Istan. I had watched her do unspeakable things to races that were peaceful. I'd watched as she mocked the Geer, innocent pawns in the Yeerk war. Their screams would never leave my mind. Never.

What was worse, was that I could not help them. Could not lift a finger, could not even pray for them, and send their spirits to a better place.

But now, I was being asked to do the almost impossible. Taking control of my speech centres was one thing. Completing a full shift was another. Yet… even as I held back this impossible tidal wave in my own head, I felt strength flowing from my brother. He believed in me. So, I fought Istan harder than I'd ever fought before. And I began to shift. In my head, Istan was desperately trying to regain control. But I kept fighting her.

(How does it feel Yeerk? To not be able to save yourself?) I asked her in my mind.

(You'll regret this Inaad! I will make you…) She didn't get to finish, because I was shifting faster now, with Ithiell letting go of me at just the right time. My bones dissolved, and my head and eyes caved in, making me blind. She screamed, and I knew she was trying to escape from being crushed. But I had her now, and if she could not take control…

Then… a wave of resistance! She fought to return my body to its original form. I fought back.

"Come on Inaad. You can do it!" Ithiell's voice cried, and I held back that overwhelming resistance, fighting for him. From far off, I heard his friends call out simular things. It made me realise I was not as alone as I once thought.

My tail collapsed in on myself, and I felt myself begin to shift faster. All my senses shut down, but not before I got rid of the Yeerk from my own head. Ejected her out of my shifting form. Then, I was purely, completely liquid. I couldn't see or feel anything. But… I knew, I was free. So I began to shift back, knowing if I was Chanaiben right then I would have cried from pure joy. I was free!

As my shoulder formed, I felt something slimy start to crawl up it. But then that thing was yanked away. And as I grew eyes and my face again, I saw the brown-haired boy holding the Yeerk Istan with distaste. He was holding it out in front of him, by two fingers, like it was a disease. To me, it was more than just that.

Finally I was whole again, and Ithiell took my hands and helped me up of the floor. I was me again! I was free! I put my arms…_my_ arms!... around my brothers and hugged him for the first time in ten years. He hugged me back, and I think at that time we were both crying.

"Inaad, you did it" he whispered in my ear, squeezing me even tighter.

"Thankyou, brother. I… I love you so much…" I cried a little more, not wanting this feeling to go away. I had control of my own body again! And what made it all better, was that my brother was with me. My twin. My… my other half. The only thing in this world that mattered to me any more.

"Uhh, what do you want me to do about this?" For a second I thought the voice wasn't real, but when I pulled away from Ithiell I saw the brown-haired boy holding up the Yeerk. In seconds, the blond-haired girl named Amanda came and took it from him, holding it out to me. But the freedom… the joy of being able to move again… it almost made me forget about it. But…

"I think you know what to do Inaad. Here" I took it from her, holding the squirming mass of slime in my hands. I dropped it on the floor… and stepped on it. I didn't take pleasure in this killing… just satisfaction that it would never take a host or destroy more lives again.

Sadly, at that moment, Istan's former followers decided to come…

_**----------------------------x---------------------------------**_

**Ithiell**

BAAAMMMMM!!! The door rocked from the pure force I knew the Bendis were delivering. In seconds they'd be through.

"Dammit! What now?!" Jake cried as another hit nearly took the second door off its hinges. Or… its welded frame.

"Morph?" Rachel wondered. Inaad stepped forward, joy flickering across her face before she turned deadly serious.

"Yes. If you can. Although…" She read my mind, since it was now almost completely open to her "… you may not be able to morph things that can fight. Robert, Jade, Asen, Amanda and Ithiell will be able to shift to Bendis… one of these from the bridge… and the three of you… the three morphers… must become something small and stay out of sight"

"What the… how do you know…" I cut Robert off.

"Our link is now clean. There is hardly any more secrets I wish to keep from her now"

"Nor I from my brother" Inaad added.

"All right. But… if it gets ugly…" Rachel never got to finish, because there was another slamming at the door, and a hunter robot… which seemed to be just small enough to fit through the break in the door… came through.

"Get your weapons!" I yelled, even as I knew what Inaad was planning. Jake grabbed his, and dove behind a chair as the hunter robot took a shot at him. It missed… but it was close.

"Master! Are you all right!"

"Hold your positions! We'll take care of this" Inaad's voice came out strong, just like Istan had made it. Immediately, the banging at the door stopped. But the robot was still advancing, still firing at each of us. In seconds, it was aimed at me…

"NO!!" Before I could blink, there was a shot, and an instant later Asen fell in front of me. He had taken a shot for me! He fell, a gaping hole where his stomach was. I knelt beside him, knowing there was nothing I could do for him now. He looked up at me, smiled… then died. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Ax's tail arch upwards, splitting the hunter robot into two separate halves.

"Asen!" Rachel cried, and tears spilled down her cheeks. For a moment I didn't understand. Then I realised… Asen was not just a Chanaiben to her. Neither was he to me. I had become to know and trust Asen like a brother. So I cried for him, and muttered those few words in our language that would take his soul to the _giflitt_ lands.

I noticed Jake had gone to his cousin, and she cried on his shoulder. Jade, Amanda and Robert all looked in shock. Inaad however…

"I am… I am sorry for your loss. But we _must_ act quickly. The Bendis will not stand at attention for much longer" She said, and I knew she was right.

"Ok" Jake whispered, then said something to Rachel. She nodded, then they both began to shrink. Ax wasn't far behind them. I stepped over Asen's lifeless body to go look down at a Bendis. I remembered the shape and size of it, and began to grow. Fur sprouted from my skin, and my feet were gone, replaced by stumps. My nose retracted back into my face, my eyes grew smaller and I lost both sets of my eyelids. My knees reversed direction, and my arms and legs grew big and thick. Now, I was full Bendis. I saw the others completing their own shifts. Inaad was watching us, and nodded. She then turned back to the door. I knew what she was going to do and say, and warned the others. I felt something land on my eye, and in seconds it was gone as I relayed the message to Jake, Rachel and Ax. With my weak Bendis eyes I saw three flies attach themselves to the ceiling.

"Break down the door!" Inaad yelled, and in seconds we were exposed.

"Master! Was there not…"

"Yes, but we incinerated them! Ha HA!!" Inaad laughed, and the Bendis joined in. We did too, and again I had an image of giant earth dogs barking.

"Master, what do you wish us to do now?" One of them asked, stepping forward.

"Take twenty of your troop to the fighter bays. I believe that is where our sensors last picked up the signals of those Chanaiben mongrels. Now go!" In seconds, half of them were out the door, and the others were all standing at attention.

"Master?"

"Stay there, at attention! Do not move, turn, or even _breathe _until I tell you to do so" Inaad said, sitting down at her chair, and then instructed the four of us to do the same.

"Master, what about the three ships?"

"They've pulled off for now. Look! They're just sitting there like cowards! Hahahaha!"

I felt her intentions, and I relayed her message to the others. Moments later, there were three very big, and very angry, earth animals behind the true Bendis. And, of course, there was us.


	27. Explosive

**Rtaia**

We were warned by Ithiell moments before the large group of Bendis passed by us. Fortunately, by then, we were all flies, hanging off the ceiling, near were the wall met the ceiling.

(I count at least twenty. Twenty! Oh man, there is no way all of us together could fight them. They'd turn us into sushi!) Cassie cried.

(Yeah, well, that's life) Marco muttered beside me. Human sarcasm is still hard for one such as myself to understand.

We had defeated our two opponents, and were heading for the bridge to assist the others, when Ithiell's warning cut through us all. He had not informed us about the situation though. The dropshaft was mere metres away now, and all we needed to do was go up. Well, shift or morph back, then proceed.

We waited a moment more, before we dropped from the ceiling. Once back to ourselves again, Marco sighed and wiped his forehead with the back of his hand.

"Phew! That was _way_ too close for my liking"

"Same. Now, let us proceed" I said, moving towards the dropshaft. Moments later we were all together, watching a gruesome scene unfold. Bendis seemed to be fighting Bendis, and two elephants, as well as a rhinoceros, had joined the fray too.

"Well…" Cassie asked, looking at Marco, then me.

"I say we join in"

"I say we not"

They both looked at me.

"We do not know which of the Bendis are allies, and which are not"

"None of them as far as I'm…"

"Wait! She's right! Where are Ithiell and the others?! We don't see them… or… but they could be the Bendis" Cassie cried, and seconds later Marco's eyes widened and he slapped his forehead.

"Okay then, what do we do?"

"Nothing" I replied, pointing at the end of the hallway. It seemed to me that the fight had finished. Three Bendis were still standing, and the earth animals. I saw one bend over and look at another Bendis, and that Bendis began to shrink. We moved forward, watching it, and in seconds Jade emerged from the Bendis.

"Jade!" Marco cried, then ran towards her. I watched as he helped her up, although she seemed to be getting up on her own, and they embraced. Cassie and I continued to walk forwards, watching as the other Bendis, and the earth animals began to shrink as well. Soon, they seemed to be our friends. And… yet… I saw another…

"It is Inaad!" I cried before I could stop myself. By then we were at the doors, and had to make our way cautiously around the bodies of the real Bendis.

"Yes, it is" Ithiell said, smiling at her.

"But… where… is the Yeerk…" Cassie trailed off, and Jake pointed to a small smudge on the floor.

"It's there. Or… what's left of it"

Marco pulled a face, his arms securely around Jade. I walked over to Inaad, looking into her eyes. They were beautiful eyes. Not many of our race had those eyes… but I looked past their beauty, to see the true Inaad. It was, indeed, the Inaad that had I was now looking at. Here eyes were amazingly sad. No Yeerk could ever portray that much sadness.

"I apologise" she said softly, and I nodded. I saw Ithiell's crewman, Asen, and the hole that was left in him. A hunter robot wasn't far from him. I went to his body, muttering the words of what was close to a human prayer. It would send his soul to rest in the beautiful place beyond life.

(Rtaia?) Aximili approached me. I turned to him, grateful to know he was alive.

"Yes?"

(Were you successful in your task?)

"Yes. Amanda?" I turned to her. She jerked her head up.

"Uh…oh! Yeah" she dug in her pockets and pulled out the control. The virus was to be timed to be set off. As was the other surprise. Ithiell was carrying the controls for that. Amanda handed me the control.

"Now all we have to do is get out of here" Jake said, rubbing his temples. It had been a long 'day' for all of us. I was tired as well, in spite of not needing sleep.

Before I knew it, Inaad was at a console, her fingers flying across it.

"What are you doing?!" I cried.

"I have sealed most of my former crew in the lower decks. Yet there are still twenty seven on this floor. I have locked eight in the docking bay, yet that will not hold them for long"

"So, nineteen still roaming the halls. We can take it" Rachel said as I joined Inaad at the controls. I discovered she was correct. Many had been sealed away, yet there were still few that were wandering around. And they were turning and coming back this way.

"No, we cannot. We must leave before the others break loose. Which will not be long, then we will be truly overwhelmed" I said.

"All right… all right…" I could tell Jake was thinking, then he looked helplessly at Ithiell.

"I know. Those that can, go big and mean. Then the rest will take Jara guns and…"

"No" I said. They all turned to look at me. I, in turn, looked at Inaad.

"I believe there may be a better way"

_**-------------------------------x--------------------------------**_

**Jade**

We became hunter robots. No joke. Small metal things with sensors. It was a weird experience. For one thing, you could 'see' in a sense, and you could sort of feel, but… you couldn't hear. It was like being deaf. The Animorphs got he fun part. They were fleas in Inaad's ears.

Five of us followed Inaad down the hallways of the ship, and then down the dropshaft… where Inaad led the way back to the storage bays (where we'd come from) with Ithiell sort of guiding her there. We passed a couple of Bendis, who we learnt, from Jake relaying it to us, asked Inaad about the lockdown. She gave nothing away, only telling them to 'obey her orders and stay where they were'. They didn't comply, and the five of us 'shot' them down. When we came across a second batch, Inaad had made up a much more believable story. She told them the 'Chanaiben mongrels could be anyone, so everyone must stay put until we find out who'. They left us in peace, and headed towards the bridge. Believe it or not, we actually made it to the bays without much incident. Then the alarms sounded.

"Master is a traitor! Find her and kill her!" Came a voice from the intercom when we all actually had ears.

"So much for their loyalty" Robert muttered, and Rachel smirked. We walked into the docking ship, where Ithiell and Ax took the controls. Rtaia seemed to be watching Inaad carefully. The rest of us just grabbed onto the railing above us and held on as the outer hatch, then the inner hatch closed. This was going to get ugly.

"Guys! Please tell me that's you!" Tobias's voice sounded though the communication systems.

"It's us Tobias. Did you have any…"

"They've launched what look like bug fighters! We… we can't…"

"All right, stay calm" Ithiell's hands flew across the controls "Docking ship to the _Inaad _and the_ Aerionna_, can you hear me?"

"Loud and clear sir" Genge's voice sounded.

"We hear you Ithiell. What is it?"

"Launch as many fighters as we have, I think…"

"We see them! Launching sir!"

"We will be there in a moment"

An explosion shook the hull! Then, we unlatched from the mase-ship, but I could tell we were having problems. In the view screen, I saw the fighter which Tobias and Keera were in take a hit. Something exploded and they went spinning out of control.

"No!" Rachel cried beside me.

"Don't worry, we're both still alive. But… we're dead in the water. We can't help you…"

"It's all right. Just watch out for yourselves. Ax? I think…"

"No. It's _my_ turn" Rachel interrupted "I want to teach these things a lesson or two…"

(But you don't know how to…)

"I'll teach her" Ithiell interrupted, and Ax moved aside for Rachel. She took the controls and Ithiell quickly explained it to her. We saw a bug fighter… or what looked like a bug fighter… come in for the kill. They aimed at our fighter…

And Rachel blew them out of the sky! Well, almost. They took a nasty hit, and went spinning away. It was only then that Ithiell and Lowri's fighters managed to get here in time. Now it was an aerial (or space) battle. We ducked and swerved… much slower than the fighters themselves… and managed to get out of the firing line.

"Inaad" Ithiell began as we realised we were being tailed. A fighter took out the one that was following us.

"Yes?"

"Are all the computers in that ship linked?"

"I believe so"

"Including the fighters?"

Inaad smiled, knowing what he was getting at.

"Yes, they are. It is to assure new recruits do not crash…"

"All right then. Rtaia"

"I am proceeding now" I saw Rtaia whip out the little control, and punch a few buttons. We were then hit, and went spinning out of control. I ended up sprawled across Jake and Robert on the floor, with Amanda practically sitting on me.

"Not fun" Rachel muttered although she was the only human that remained standing. We got up, and watched as something amazing happened. The 'bug' fighters… or whatever they were… all stopped. Simply just… stopped. Ithiell smiled.

"All right then. Everyone ok?"

"If you wanted to knock us around a bit…"

"We're ok" Cassie interrupted Marco, who gave her a bit of a dirty look.

"Good. Now… Ax… no wait, Inaad?"

"Yes brother"

"Can you open a channel to that ship?"

"I believe so. With your help"

"All right then. Come up here" She took Rachel's place, and the two of them worked hard for a moment, with the docking ship slowly drifting (since the last blast took out an engine) until we saw a very P.Oed Bendis face on the screen.

"Why has the traitor contacted us thus? We do not…"

"Hey, ever wonder what happened to the third group of Chanaiben mongrels?" Ithiell asked. It seemed to be thinking about this for a moment.

"They planted a virus in the system…"

"No, not them. The _other _ones" Ithiell whipped out his control, playing with it for a moment. The Bendis frowned. Or… what _looked_ like a frown. Who could tell with those things.

"I do not…"

"Badaa-BOOOOM" Rachel said, laughing.

The Bendis looked shocked. He knew what was going on. So did we.

"You're lying!"

"Oh no, we're not. Want to show you?" Ithiell said, then pressed a button on his little control. Seconds later, the mase-ship exploded, sending all of the fighters and the docking ship spinning.

I hit the walls and floor again, feeling like I was stuck in a tumble-dryer. I think almost everyone else… well, everyone _human_… felt the same way.

When it was over, I think we all let out a sigh of relief. Even Inaad. She was smiling, and looking at her twin with what seemed to be pure joy. I was glad for her.

"Well… what now?" Jake asked as he helped Amanda and Cassie up. Robert and Rachel picked each other up. Arms went around me, lifting me up as well. It was Marco. I smiled at him, and held on to him as well, before turning back to the four aliens at the front of the docking ship. Ithiell turned to us.

"Well, now we all go home"

"Good. I think I've missed about two years of…"

"Marco!!" We all let out in unison. But it felt good. Another victory… and we were all alive.


	28. The price of freedom, and the future

_3 years forward…_

**Jade**

I opened the car door, and stepped out into the beautiful afternoon sun. Marco did the same. I moved my sunglasses up onto my head, looking around at the scenery. It was breathtaking. No wonder Ithiell wanted to meet here. I smelled the sea not to far away, and saw the large cottage, where Ithiell stepped out, looking grim. I ran to him, and threw my arms around him.

"I'm so sorry"

"It's… I'm ok" I pulled back and looked into those big green eyes of his. He looked back at me, sadly.

"Uh, hey Jade!" Marco called from the car. I turned to look at him.

"What?"

"Forget something?" He asked, then opened the back of the door and pulled out our one year old son.

"Well, you can bring him, can't you?" I called back, then turned to Ithiell. He was smiling.

"Like father, like son" he said and looked down at me "He'd better have your mind when he grows up"

I laughed a little "Don't worry, I'll make sure he doesn't…"

"Jade! Hey!"

"Now what!"

"He just…oh eeeeewww!"

"Yeah? So? Fix him up then. I'm not going to do it _all_ the time"

"But… oh, but…"

"Hey, I didn't create him myself, you know"

"Uh… oh"

I guess I should back up first, before I go on. We were married (which I know you were all wondering about) and our son's name was Alejandro. Well, on his birth certificate. I called him Alex.

The next few months, after we got back home, we all kind of rushed right into the marriage thing. Even Robert, believe it or not. Her name was Sammy, and they just happened to meet one night at a party Amanda's brother, Connor, had been hosting. I guess you could say love can strike anywhere.

Marco, believe it or not, gave up his gigantic mansion and we moved into an average two-story house. He still kept his millions, but gave a quarter of it to Cassie and Amanda's projects (working on expanding and keeping the Hork-Bajir territory, and some national forests) and two thirds of what was left to help the poor and homeless. Not that he didn't still have enough to buy a small island…

The eleven of us were no longer terrorist targets. They had resumed to trying to bomb the Whitehouse and places like that. But by then the major terrorist targets had force fields, and no one could get in without a thorough checkover. In fact, we were all old news. It had been about seven years since we were 'big' news. The hype about that was over with.

Jake had gone into the military along with Robert and Rachel. The three were still training some special forces people and that. I guess nothing ever changed with those three. Once a warrior, always a warrior.

Tobias was still unsure of his future, although he _was_ training as a fighter pilot, the last I heard. He was born to fly. With wings or not, the sky would always belong to him.

Ax was made a War-Prince, for all his bravery. Ovatt and Kayleese could vouch for that. By the way, they had a cute little daughter. I don't remember what they named her, but it was a beautiful name.

Rtaia was honoured in her own culture, along with Ithiell and Lowri, and the Chanaiben crews. Inaad…well…

Sadly, on this day, we were reuniting for a funeral. For Inaads funeral. She had gone on a scouting mission in something a little bigger than a fighter, and was destroyed by a rogue band of Ternians. The word was she'd fought till the very end. She never gave in, not even when her ship was breaking up…

Marco managed to change Alex (whinging the whole time) and we went inside where the others were waiting. Plus a few other Chanaibens. I quickly found out that four were Ithiell's grandparents. And a few cousins and stuff.

I was handed a drink by Jake, and then he handed one to Marco, still holding Alex propped up with one arm. He nearly dropped him, but I managed to grab him with my spare hand and take him. Now, he was balanced neatly on my left side, and his little hands curled around and took hold of a chunk of my shirt. I didn't mind. He put his head on my shoulder, and I rocked him gently to sleep.

I looked around the room, and spotted Cassie. She was holding her daughter on her lap. One arm was wrapped around the little girls waist, the other sipping her drink.

"I thought we were going to have the funeral first" I heard Marco say to Ithiell.

"No. The tradition is that we drink the sacred liquid first, then fly out to the area where Inaad is to be buried" I heard Ithiell choking on the words. Soon, I saw his grandmother go over to him, putting an arm around his shoulders. She said something in Chanaiben, then led Ithiell away for a moment.

"Hey" Tobias said, greeting me. He was holding his son in his arms. The strange thing was, all of us kind of had kids around the same time. Tobias's son was about two months younger than Alex.

"Hey. Where's your cup?"

"Finished it. Didn't taste too good"

"Uh-huh" I took a sip, and realised what he meant. It was _way_ too sweet. Tobias kind of laughed at my reaction, and I just pulled a face at him. He laughed some more.

Cody, Tobias's son, was reaching out and trying to touch Alex. Alex was still sound asleep. Tobias took Cody's little hand in his own and turned his attention back to him.

"They are _so_ cute, aren't they?" Sammy appeared beside us, holding her daughter.

"Yeah, sort of" Robert joined us. I noticed Ithiell was next to Amanda, taking one of their twin boys and holding him. Then the last members of our little band arrived.

Ax and Rtaia strode through, with their Andalite daughter in tow. Lowri entered soon after that. She was on her feet, and making funny wheezing sounds while she looked up at her father. She didn't have that deadly tail yet, only a kind of tail like Ithiell's. They'd named her Aerionna, after Rtaia's mother. I had a feeling she'd live up to her name in the future.

Tobias and Sammy got swept up when Rachel and her Chanaiben counterpart went by. Soon, it was just me and Robert.

"So"

"So" I replied.

He smiled at me "I'm glad we're all here now. Thanks for…"

"No, thank_you_ Robert. Without you, I'd never have… you know" He smiled at me, then put a hand gently on my son's head, then pulled it away and went over to collect his daughter. Jake soon swung by again, a little more grim than the others. He pulled me aside, and talked in a low voice so no-one else could hear.

"So, what the Ellimist showed you…"

"I… I don't know Jake. But… if it's true… they'll have the best of all of us"

He seemed to consider this for a moment, then smiled and nodded. We finished our drinks, and then it was time for the funeral. Sammy and a couple of Ithiell's cousins would stay and watch over our children. We all took to the air, with Tobias being carried by Lowri, and the rest of us shifting or morphing. We flew out and over the water, for a few miles. We then reached a small island, where, with eagle eyes, I saw the casket that she was going to be buried in. And… I saw her body.

We spilled air from our wings and went down, with Jake and Robert rocketing past us, making me feel like I was standing still. We became human, and Lowri let Tobias go. Some of the other Chanaiben males did the same, letting go of the females. One of Ithiell's grandfather went to stand in front of us all, as we all took our seats.

It was hard for everyone, especially Ithiell. But Amanda and Rtaia were in either side of him, each holding one of his hands. Finally, it was time for Ithiell to speak.

"What else can I say about my sister? She was brave, strong, and… I will miss her dearly" I saw him fighting back tears, and I had to resist the urge to go to him. But… when he continued, he was strong again "She was my other half, my _Unami_. My sister. But… I just want to say this. She may be dead, but at least… at least she died free"

That was true. She died controlling her own eyes, moving her own hands, feeling her own terror and being able to act on it. Which is what we all wanted from the start. To die free.

When it was over, we all stayed to talk a little.

"Yeerks will never be able to hurt her again" Ithiell said softly as the eleven of us stood in a loose circle. Amanda took his hand and squeezed it.

"Hopefully, they'll never come here again" Jake said, an arm around Cassie. She had been crying, and was still doing that a little. Sadly enough, so was I. Marco arms were around my waist from behind, nuzzling my neck. It was comforting… at least a little.

"Yeah. And if they do, we'll… well, they won't last five seconds on this planet again. Not with us here" Robert said, hands in his pockets. Rachel nodded, smiling that devil-may-care grin she always seemed to have.

The other Chanaibens lifted off, and left us to talk.

(The Andalite council has made sure to keep a very close eye on the Yeerk home world. Anything that tries to leave that planet will be destroyed)

"That sounds good" Tobias muttered.

"But… what do you think happened to the Blade ship?" Rtaia asked. Ax shrugged.

(I do not know. Perhaps we will never hear about the Blade ship ever again)

"Maybe it's been destroyed" I suggested, shrugging as best I could with Marco still attached to me.

"Maybe. I guess we'll never know" Jake said sadly, sighing.

"Well, as long as we get at _least_ another ten years of good luck, I'm not complaining" Marco said. We all agreed. The past three years had gone well, for all of us. We actually had kids now, and that, in itself, was wonderful.

Yet… I still knew… it might be over for us, but something big was going to happen in the future, and our kids would all be a part of it…

**THE END!!**

**Haha! How did you like that?? I had a sudden BURST of inspiration last night, and this is what I came up with. Hope you all enjoyed, and if you're wondering about their kids, go check out The Yeerk Reinvasion so you know. BYZ!! **


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